Troublemakers
by BlueSkyBrightLights
Summary: Katniss is one of those kids who gets in trouble, big time. She's in modern New York, no Hunger Games, and she's about to meet a boy who changes everything. Peeta/Katniss. How will things turn out for them? This is just the beginning of a long story.
1. Something About This Boy

**Okay, I know what you're thinking! "YOU'RE CRAZY! You are starting another story when you can barely keep up with your others?" Lol, well I thought that we need a "modern day" Katniss. And it'd be fun to write about because sometimes, it's nice to have a break from all that "worry and fear of being reaped." Just saying, it's kind of fun to write something like this, so I decided to give it a shot. Just as simple as that :-) **

** Okay, some things you need to know. Katniss is the type of kid in school who always gets into trouble, big time. Peeta's an athlete and he's also a troublemaker, who becomes close to Katniss. Glimmer, I know she's a tribute, but she's one of Katniss' best friends. Demeter is one of Katniss' best friends also. Things are different, much different. There are no Hunger Games, Katniss' father isn't dead, and Prim and Rue, tribute also, are best friends in middle school. Things turn out very good and bad for Katniss. Peeta's the new kid, and soon, Katniss starts to fall for this "handsome" boy, the girls say.**

I'm racing down the hallways of our school. Some students cheer me on and some roll their eyes as some teachers chase me down the hallways. New York City is my home. I love it here. The places I can go to be wild, live life to the fullest, and be as far from romance as possible. I'm wondering if he'd see me. Gale Hawthorne, the captain of the football team, has always thought of me as…a rebel. I laugh all the time. I don't have any feelings towards him. I just like him as a…acquaintance. We're not friends, best friends, and we are not in a relationship, which a lot of people make rumors about.

My two best friends, Demeter and Glimmer, laugh as they follow me with water balloons, throwing them at the teachers who want to take us down. But, they never can. We make our way to the football field. The team is laughing at us as the teachers chase us onto the field. Then I see him, the new kid. He's been on my mind for a while. I can't get those deep blue eyes, blond hair, and gold skin out of my head. I hear all the girls giggle as he makes his way down the hallways. He's laughing with a group of boys and one of them is Gale. Gale raises his eyebrows as he sees my looks at Peeta. He then has an amused grin on his face. He must think I like Peeta. I roll my eyes and try to hide the blush. There's no way I like the kid. I don't even know him. Peeta turns around and laughs. His laugh is so amazing that it makes me long for more of it. I just really need to get this kid out of my head, and I don't know how. He's only been in school for two weeks and already he's the most popular kid in school.

My brown hair is long and blows backwards, my tight skinny jeans don't allow me to run as fast, and my one shoulder shirt presses against my body as we run. Demeter has green eyes, brown hair, and tan skin. She's like the golden goddess, I tell her, but she only gets bad when I do. Glimmer, the blond hair, the brown hair, and the light skin glow in the sun as we run. A lot of boys talk about her, but she shows no interest. My Converse shoes are easy to run with and I feel as if I'm flying, until I bump into someone- Coach Higgins. I sigh as I know what my punishment is. The soaked teachers come right behind us, gasping for air. I try to turn around but Coach Higgins laughs and pulls us towards him. He's not the mean type; in fact, my punishment is he's going to tell my dad. Coach Higgins and my dad are best friends. So, I don't get detention or anything that goes on my permanent record, just a yelling and grounding from my dad.

"I'll take care of it, these three are in trouble all right," he says as the teachers nod and make their way back to the building. Paradise High School is my third school I've been to. I was quick to making friends because everyone likes a troublemaker to lighten up their boring days. I smile innocently and he shakes his head. "You two, back into the building, I'm calling your parents." Demeter and Glimmer wave at me and then leave. I turn to face him and he shakes his head in disappointment and sighs. "This is the third time I've saved your butt. So, I have a punishment of my own." The football team is now surrounding us. I see Peeta looking at me and I smile mischievously. He chuckles and Coach Higgins turns to see Peeta, he smiles almost…amused and says, "Katniss, I've heard you have some trouble in your math grades."

I look at him suspiciously. He turns to Peeta again to wink at him. I look at Peeta for a while and my eyes widen as I know what Coach is going to do. Before I can say anything, Coach says, "Peeta is going to tutor you. He's very smart, and I think you'll be fine with it." I was going to protest but he gives me that look and I get an idea.

"Well, I'm fine with it. Are you sure this is a punishment, because it seems more like…reward," the last word came out flirty. The football team burst out laughing. I just realized I made a fool of myself.

Coach glares at me, for the first time ever. He knows my dad would never ever approve of something that I over look as…dating. Peeta is grinning and Coach turns to him, glaring at him also. I get the feeling Peeta is also a troublemaker.

"Peeta, what do you think, will you tutor, AND only tutor Katniss?" Coach says those words very carefully; making sure Peeta gets the idea that he is not to touch me. I laugh and this makes Peeta's face brighten.

The football team goes off because Coach Bruce calls them. As they all move out, Peeta says, "We'll see."

I find myself blushing and Peeta smiles. Coach Higgins turns to me and says, "Do not."

I smile mischievously, "I won't promise."

I head back into the building to find Demeter and Glimmer waiting for me near the door. Demeter and Glimmer look at me, as if to say, "What is your punishment?"

I smile and say, "I got a date with the new boy."

They laugh and say, in unison, "No way."

"Ugh, you guys sound like gossip queens. I was just kidding, and Peeta followed my joke to make Higgins furious," I say, avoiding the conversation they always start up.

Demeter doesn't believe me and she says, "But Katniss, you do like him though. Every time you look at him, and he looks back up to you, you turn as red as a cherry."

They laugh and here they start with the conversation I desperately try to avoid. Glimmer adds, "This will be very interesting. I mean, you know how crazy these girls are for the football guys. And lately, all they've been talking about is Peeta. I think Peeta likes you…," he stretches the last word and makes it into a teasing joke.

I roll my eyes and say, "No he doesn't. We barely know each other. AND, why would anyone like me?"

They look at each other and roll their eyes simultaneously. Glimmer says, "Katniss, we all know that the boys talk about you, and that's why all these girls are jealous 'cause they're trying to kill others to be the best," that was supposed to be a joke, but I took it seriously.

"Katniss, if he likes you, would you tell him that you like him?" Demeter plays with her brown curls as we walk down the hallways.

"No, he doesn't like me," I say, quietly.

Their eyes widen and they say, loudly, "SO YOU DO LIKE HIM!"

Everyone turns to us. I glare at Glimmer and Demeter. "See what you guys do!"

We hear a burst of laughter behind us and I'm afraid I know who it belongs to. Gale. I turn around rapidly to see him, Peeta, and Cato. Glimmer and Demeter also laugh. My eyes go to Peeta, he's not even laughing, just looking down at the floor, blushing. I feel my cheeks run red. Not only because I'm angry, but because Peeta heard the entire conversation. The hallways soon fill up with the chatter of students and everyone starts doing what they were.

Demeter stops laughing once she sees my hands into fists. She turns to Gale and says, "Did you hear everything?"

I roll my eyes because she knows they did. "Yes, we heard ALL of it," he says as he and Cato laugh their asses off. I quickly wall away from them, pissed off.

I hear footsteps behind me and someone tap my shoulder. My heart beats faster and I turn around to see Peeta. I knew it had to be him. Just the warmth of him tapping my shoulder would take full effect on me. He's not laughing when he says, "Don't listen to them."

I smile and say, "I never do."

I don't know what it is that Peeta does to me. But, I don't hate it or love it. I just simply want to feel it more often.


	2. Becoming Friends or More Than That

**Okay, I love you guys right now! Did you guys hear that? That was the sound of my mind exploding! So, this is a great start to 'Troublemakers.' I'm really glad many people like it. ;-) I'm also letting you guys know that thanks to you guys' reviews, I'm going to keep writing this story. At first, I thought that I would just take it down if it doesn't get reviews, but you guys are amazing :). **

**BECOMING FRIENDS OR MORE THAN THAT**

**PEETA POV:**

Today I'm supposed to tutor Katniss. I wake up to the sound of my father and mother fighting again. I roll my eyes and jump out of bed. The memory of Katniss' conversation makes a smile appear on my face. Does she really like me? I've got to get her out of my head, but I just can't. I think I'm obsessed with the girl. Every time I get to Social Studies class, my eyes always find her first. I catch her staring at me a couple of times, and it makes me chuckle. When I catch her, she rolls her eyes and smiles. She's been getting in trouble for a while, and I've been here for two weeks and I'm already on Coach Higgins' "bad" list. I get ready and before I know it, I got five minutes to get there. My eyes widen and I leave straight for school. I hop into my car, avoiding my bickering parents and my annoying big brother who should have left home already.

When I get to school, there are a bunch of girls chatting and giggling as my car pulls up. I ignore them because I don't know how they don't see how pathetic they are. That's the difference between Katniss and those girls. Katniss doesn't give a damn about that type of gossip, clothing, and makeup. She wears whatever and always bees her herself. I like that about her. She's different. She isn't just a girl, she's _the_ girl. I walk into the school and to my locker. My first class is Social Studies so I'm happy that I'll see Katniss. It's late and it's no shocker when I see Katniss run to her locker that is right next to mine. She smiles and says, "Huh, you're late, troublemaker."

I smile and say, "Well, I'm not the only one."

She rolls her eyes and smiles, "Well, do you want to get to class or what?"

We get our things and get to social studies before the teacher starts to close the door. He takes one good look at us. The class "OOO's" in a teasing way. What do they think we were doing? The teacher finally lets us pass and we sit on our desks. Katniss doesn't sit very near to me, but I can still steal looks from her. Gale punches my arm jokingly and says, "Dude, moving too fast?"

I turn and glare at him. "We weren't doing anything."

"I think you're lying. You did it with Katniss behind the school, right?"

I'm so furious that I knock my books of my desk and yell, "Shut up, Gale!"

Everyone looks at us, the teacher turns around and glares at me. She says, "Mr. Mellark, haven't I've given you detention about five times since you've come here."

Mrs. Cora doesn't like me because my brother used to be one of her students. And he was a very bad student. I prepare myself to talk back because I don't like being glared at. "I guess so."

She raises an eyebrow and says, "So, would you like another."

I roll my eyes and mutter, "No, but it doesn't mean that you have to hate because my brother was one of your bad students."

Her eyes widen in anger as she says, "What was that, Mr. Mellark?"

Everyone's eyes are on me, even Katniss'. Her expression is sort of…amused. I smile kindly at the teacher, but what I'm going to say isn't so nice. "I said…why are you such a hater?"

The class laughs and Mrs. Cora says, "That's it Mr. Mellark! You've earned yourself detention, today!"

I shrug and in a bored tone, I say, "Why are your classes so boring? They should hire someone better."

The class burst out laughing again. Katniss decides to join in and says, "Yeah, I mean, there isn't anything interesting about whatever you're teaching us. I don't even know because I wasn't paying attention."

The class is laughing as Mrs. Cora turns to Katniss and glares at her. "You'll join him, Ms. Everdeen!"

Katniss shrugs and says, "Like I said, it isn't a punishment, it's a reward," she smiles at me and I smile back."

Gale laughs and says, "Mrs. Cora, you shouldn't call Katniss Ms. Everdeen. She's soon to be Mrs. Mellark," at that, everyone bursts out laughing. Katniss and I glare at Gale. After that, Gale is sent to detention with us. I smile evilly at him. He smiles back and passes me a note. I read it:

_Dude, so when are you going to propose to Katniss? I'm sure she'll be so happy._

I roll my eyes and reply:

_Shut up! You're an ass._

I hear him laugh softly. He passes me the note again.

_Are you going to be a father?_

This one makes me laugh. I don't know why, but it just does.

_No, but I bet you will. All the girls you've slept with. _

He doesn't laugh; he punches me hard on the arm. I let out a very loud laugh as he passes back the note. Unfortunately, Mrs. Cora sees it and her eyes widen, making the class turns to us. "Read the note, Mr. Mellark."

I laugh at Gale and he laughs with me. I don't think I'd be happy to read the first part. But I do, and when I'm done, the class is holding in the laughter as well as they can, and Katniss looks as red as cherry. I've embarrassed her and I know I need to apologize. Mrs. Cora sends us out of her room. We're walking down the hallway, cursing at each other, playfully. Then we hear someone run behind us, Katniss. "You guys thought I wouldn't get in trouble either? My record is five seconds to get as much trouble as possible."

Gale grins at me and says, "Well, I'll leave you and your girlfriend alone."

I look at him for a while, pissed off. But when I see the Katniss, that anger fades away. "We'll see if I can beat that score," I say, breaking the silence.

She laughs and says, "No you can't."

I raise an eyebrow and say, "Oh really?" She nods and I pick her up and throw her over my shoulder. She screams and laughs as I run down the hallways and out the door of the school. When we are on the streets of New York, I drop her and she looks at me, smiling. I smile back and I say, "Then, if you're so bad, skip school with me."

She smiles wider, looks into my eyes, and says, "Okay."

We've been driving for a while until she gasps as she looks around. We're in New York City Times Square. I look at her and smile. Her stormy gray eyes are shiny in the lights of New York City. Her hair glows and I feel like I'm staring at an angel. She looks back at me, with a smile and she says, "Thanks, Peeta."

I smile and nod. I take her to 'Subway' to eat. She's smiling the whole time and it makes my heart burst into happiness. I don't think Katniss is _the_ girl anymore. I think she's soon to be _my_ girl.

As we eat, I get to know her. She talks about her sister, Primrose, her mother and father, and her love for music. When she talks, I can't help but feel like she's been my friend forever. I hope she feels the same way. I tell her to sing and she blushes and immediately refuses. I pout, playfully and she rolls her eyes. I tell her about myself and she seems to listen to every word. After that, we head out to the park. We're walking down a path and I see a beautiful flower, the first in spring. I pick it out of the soil and hand it to Katniss. She blushes and smiles. I help her fix into her hair and before I know it, I'm looking straight into her eyes as she looks into mine. We snap out of it and we look away. I'm tempted to hold her hand. But, I think about it. My hand has other plans. I grab her hand and she doesn't pull away. She entwines her fingers with mine. We sit on a bench, still holding hands.

I take a deep breath."Katniss?"

She's looking straight ahead and it takes her a few seconds to realize that I've spoken. She slightly smiles, "Yes?"

I lean in and kiss her. Her soft lips touch mine and it feels like electricity. When I feel her arms wrap around my neck, is when I know she doesn't mind. I pull her closer and she kisses me back. I think of what I just did.

I kissed Katniss Everdeen. And she kissed me back.


	3. Sparks

Updating 2 CHAPTERS TODAY! I'm like obsessed with this story and I'm glad that it had many responses very quick! Check out my other stories ;-) And you guys are amazing so this is my gift to you :D

** SPARKS **

**KATNISS POV:**

His lips are soft and sweet. I feel my heart beat quicken and my face feels hot. I have my arms wrapped around his neck, my forehead is against his, and I'm looking right into his eyes. Those ocean blue eyes make me wonder if I'd ever get lost in them like an ocean. I close my eyes for a minute, trying not to let the spark that is exploding in the inside of me show. There's a spark in my stomach, spreading a warm feeling. This feeling is like no other. I've never felt something like it. Then it hits me; it must be love. I promised myself that I would never fall in love. But, Peeta Mellark, the troublemaker, changed that. I know I just met him, but it feels as if I've known him forever. I never do this, never. But it's like…as if I needed to kiss him. My mind is going in every direction, while I try to figure out what he's thinking. Before I know it, his lips are onto mine again. That spark explodes in me again, sending the warmth over me.

I open my eyes to immediately meet his. There I am again. I'm looking into those blue eyes that seem to trap me. Why does he do that to me? We're staring into each other's eyes for a while. I close my eyes again, trying to figure out what to say, but I'm speechless.

"Katniss," he says, trying to break the silence. I don't respond, "Katniss."

I open my eyes and I smile at him. For some reason, he gets me smiling all the time. _Maybe, Katniss, is because you're starting to love him. _He smiles back and he says, "I think we should get going, unless if you want to stay."

My smile widens and I say, "I rather stay."

**Peeta POV:**

The rest of the day, we spend it walking through the park, holding hands the whole time. We're in my car, on our way back to school, when Katniss starts to laugh. I look at her as if she was crazy; she just smiles and says, "It's nothing, really." Well, that "nothing" seems very funny to her, but I don't question it anymore. When we get to school, Gale, Demeter, Glimmer, and Cato are in the parking lot, laughing at something. I don't even want to know what it is. When we get out of the car, Gale raises an eyebrow along with Cato. Demeter and Glimmer go to Katniss and start asking her questions repeatedly. Gale and Cato pull me away from them and Cato says, "Dude, did you?"

I roll my eyes and exclaim, "No! What is it with you guys and sleeping with girls? I should call you guys 'sluts'."

I laugh as their expressions on their faces turn serious as Gale punches me in the arm. "Hey, we are not 'sluts'. We just want to know, man. You're still a virgin!"

We were inside that school already and at that, everyone looks at us and starts laughing. I glare at Gale and say, "I'm going to kill you."

He drops his books and starts running down the hallway, with me right behind him. We pass groups and groups of students. I don't care right now, I really don't. Gale's going to get it one way or another. We pass doors and doors as students move out of the way. Some are laughing and saying, "You get him, Peeta!"

I ignore them and keep chasing Gale. I'm much faster than Gale so I catch him by the collar of his shirt. He shrugs innocently and I roll my eyes and keep glaring at him. I was just about to smash him into the lockers when I hear the deep voice that I despise so much. "Put him down right now, Peeta!" I turn around to see my father. What is he doing here? I let Gale go and he stands there, looking at my father, almost in…fear. Gale's never scared, but my father is someone to be terrified of. He grabs my ear and pulls me by them down the hallways. No one seems to laugh because my father is tall, muscular, and has deep blue eyes that look evil. The pain on my ear has made it numb. When we get out to the parking lot, where Katniss is still there, he yells, "I just got a call from your school? Do you really think this is all worth it? One more strike and you move to California with your other brother!"

He's talking about my other brother who's 22, Ty. He moved to California and already has a successful life there. He was always my father's favorite, but I don't care because father is a big…

"And what were you thinking skipping school! Did I not teach you better than that?"

I'm furious. "No, you didn't! You barely have time to even talk to me, so no! You didn't teach me anything!" I yell, furiously at him. I glance at Katniss and her friends as they look at me. Katniss seems worried and this has to be the first time I've seen her worried. Before my father, who is suddenly not angry anymore, can say anything else, I storm off and run off into the streets. I find the only place that has brought me peace, the small park. In the spring, it's beautiful. There are flowers everywhere and there's a small pond. I love it there, and it's the only place that has made me feel less imprisoned. Ever since I moved, which I move many times a year, I thought this would be a chance for my family to start over. So my father and mother can stop arguing and my older brother, Seth, can stop being an ass. I start to calm down once I get there. I sit on the grass and breathe. Breathe, Peeta. I close my eyes and hear someone call my names, softly. I smile at the sound of her voice, Katniss.

"Peeta?"

I wipe the smile off my face and turn around to see her. The sunlight makes her eyes shine even more. Her brown hair glows in the sunlight. She walks over to me and sits next to me. She sits close to me, so I take the moment to put my arms around her. She doesn't reject, she moves closer and lays her head on my shoulder. Then she says, "Peeta, what happened?"

I sigh and tell her. She moves even closer as I finish and I can't help but smile. I can't even describe how this feels in just words. I don't know what she does to me. I usually never fall for girls this easily. But then I remember she's different. And I realize…I like different.

**HOPE YOU GUYS LIKED! ;-) I'm really thankful for everyone who's reading. So here's a shout out to those who reviewed:**

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_** Peeta Mellark Is All Mine 8D**_

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__**THANKS YOU GUYS! :D **


	4. Art Class Fun

Hey guys, so here it is! Thanks for everyone who's been reviewing! So, I got a new chapter ready for you guys! Tomorrow, I'll be updating 2 more chapters so :P THANKS!

**Katniss' POV:**

I'm walking to Prim's room. I open the door to the sound of Prim laughing. It makes me happy to hear her laugh, and it never gets old because she does it so much. She's playing with our dog Max. I hear the hamster wheel move, to reveal our fat and fluffy hamster Zhu. Prim adores him and Max. When we got them for her, she was so excited and happy. I smile and say, "Time to go to school, little Duck."

She says goodbye to Max and Zhu. We're walking downstairs and we grab our bags, and before I can get out the door, I hear my dad call my name. I tell Prim to wait outside and she walks right out the door. I turn to see my dad, he's angry. What did I do know? He probably got a call, and he didn't tell me yesterday because he went to California for a stupid meeting. Dad's always going on business trips. He leaves often and only stays home for a couple of days, and then he leaves. I don't think he ever knows how much Prim misses him sometimes. What pisses me off is that it seems to me like he doesn't care about us; not Prim, not me, and not my mother. He leaves, and then expects us to be fine. This is only _one _of the reasons I'm not so content with him.

"Katniss, what's this about you skipping school and miss behaving?" He's looking cruelly at me. He always thinks it's good to do well in school. The more he says it, the more I don't listen. I'm surprised he hasn't realized that yet. I just look at him, with an annoyed expression on my face, letting him know I am not answering. He sighs and says, "What were you doing with that boy?"

I'm surprised. Is he talking about Peeta? Of course he is. I raise an eyebrow and spit, "What do you care?"

He raises his voice and yells, "You better stay away from that boy! And if I get one more call from your school, you're in serious trouble. Do you hear me?"

I roll my eyes and snap, "Whatever." Before he can even yell at me another time, I walk right out, slamming the door shut.

I drop Prim off at her school, leaving her with her two friends. I walk to school, and on the way, I meet Demeter and Glimmer. I don't even smile at them because I'm still angry at them. But, what they did, did make me get closer to Peeta. They roll their eyes and walk beside me, talking about Gale and Cato. I don't even want to know what they're saying. They're making fun of them; that's Glimmer and Demeter for you. When they like a guy, they would not freak out over him…they'd make fun of them. It's a little funny, but I can't see myself making fun of Peeta. There's nothing to really make fun of.

We get inside the school, and almost immediately, Gale and Cato are walking with us. I roll my eyes and walk ahead of them. I don't know where Peeta is, and right now, he's the only person I want to see. As I walk down the hallway, I get some looks from the girls. I ignore them and at one I have to bite my lip to stop myself from beating her to death. I get to social studies to find Peeta where he usually sits. He looks up at me and smiles. I smile back, trying to hide the blush heating my cheeks.

The bell rings and the last of the students get inside. Mrs. Cora is teaching us about the American Railroad. She tells us we're going to have a project and that we need partners. The class brightens up and that's when I start to pay attention. She says she didn't pick the partners, the Principal Jenkins did. I hate that old bastard. He's cruel, ruthless, and extremely aggressive. I don't even know how he can keep this job without getting reported for beating a student! Seriously, the man is a psychopath! Mrs. Cora starts reading out the names. Gale got Glimmer. Cato got Demeter. I laugh a little and turn to them. I grin at them and they roll their eyes and smile. Suddenly, Mrs. Cora says, "Peeta and Katniss."

Glimmer and Demeter laugh and I turn around quickly, hoping that Peeta didn't see the heat and redness in my cheeks. I can feel the eyes of the girls who wanted Peeta on me. I don't care about them, I just don't want anyone to see me blush because no one does that…except for Peeta. He's the only guy who has made me blush, ever. I can't stand it, but I can't help it. I calm myself down and turn back to Demeter and Glimmer, who are now talking to Peeta. I'm wondering what they're saying, all I know is that I'm not going to like it. I can tell it's something that I won't like because Peeta's a light shade of pink. I smile at it though.

I haven't really talked to Peeta after the kiss. It's been a little awkward between us. But, I need to talk to him at some point, especially because we're going to be partners…partners in social studies. Mrs. Cora quiets down the class as she continues with our requirements and assignments. We need to find out as much about the American Railroad as we can. We need to right a five-page essay and draw pictures with the essay. I don't listen to the rest, I'm sure Peeta's not either, but who knows?

**Peeta's POV:**

I'm drawing in my notebook. My only favorite class is art class. Mrs. Levy is funny, kind, and she understands me. She's concern about me getting in trouble, but she doesn't yell at me like everyone else. I'm glad Katniss has art with me next. Today we have to deal with clay-sculpting. I laugh every time Katniss messes up. She always laughs at herself and makes me help her. Just then, the bell rings and I see that Katniss is the first person to get out of class; she really must hate this class as much as I do.

I walk into art class. Katniss sits on a stool near the clay-sculpting machines. I sit next to her on the closes machine and I'm surprised to hear her say, "Promise you won't laugh if I mess up," she looks up from the machine to me and grins.

I chuckle and say, "Only if you let me help you."

She laughs and nods, "Okay, Mr. Mellark."

Mrs. Levy walks in explains what we will be making. We'll be making vases. I chuckle as Katniss' expression drops into an "Are you serious" look. She looks at me and raises an eyebrow. I shut up because I promised her I wouldn't laugh if she'd let me help her. Mrs. Levy makes us get started and right away, Katniss messes up. I drag my stool right behind hers and wrap my arms around her waist. I stretch my arms to the machine through her arms, touching her hands that are on the clay. The clay is cold and wet, but Katniss is touching most of it. Gale and Glimmer have this class with us, and Gale grins and me and I can see Glimmer grin at Katniss. I suddenly smile as I think of something very clever to tell Gale, something that will bother him big time.

Katniss' small waist makes it easy to reach the machine. My attention suddenly leaves the machine and I realize I'm staring at Katniss' body. She has those curves in all the right places. Her slim body is very…hot. I hear Gale laugh along with Glimmer loudly from across the room. Mrs. Levy shushes them and I realize Katniss is calling my name. "Peeta, are you day dreaming?" She laughs.

I lightly blush and say, "No, I was just…focusing, unlike other people," I joke.

She playfully gasps and says, "That is mean! And I don't think that you were focusing because look what a mess we made."

I look at our "clay sculpture." It's a big blob. I laugh and Katniss joins me. "Well, what happen to you? I mean, you must have been seeing what we were doing," I say defensively.

I can tell she's smiling. "Yeah, and I was laughing the whole time," then she adds, "I'm not the one who was checking out a girl's body the entire time." My eyes widen and she laughs. "Yeah, I saw you, Peeta. It wasn't so hard to find out with your buddy Gale over here laughing his ass off."

I blush, and this time real hard. She seems to take it as a joke. I feel uncomfortable suddenly and I want to pull my arms away from her. But she turns around fully on her stool, her whole body facing mine. She looks into my eyes and I look into hers. She lifts her hands and cups my face in them. I realize why she starts to laugh; she rubbed wet clay on my lips, cheeks, and my entire face. I gasp playfully and then smirk. Without even thinking about her reaction, about the others in the room watching us, or what Mrs. Levy might do, I kiss Katniss on the lips, spreading the clay on her mouth too.

She doesn't care; she just smiles and kisses me back. The wet clay tastes horrible and it sets an uneasy feeling in my stomach. But Katniss' lips quickly change that. I realize the entire class, including Mrs. Levy, is watching us. Katniss turns around to look around the room. She looks at me and smiles. I smile back and Mrs. Levy says, "Okay you two, back to work," she has a slight smile on her face. The class goes back to their sculptures and Katniss and I are left with two huge smiles on our faces.

After art class, its lunch time and when I see Katniss, she smiles and walks over to me. "Want to eat lunch outside?"

I smile and say, "Sure, let's just get out of here before Gale gets here."

She laughs and we go outside. We sit on the grass, against a tree trunk. Katniss eats an apple as I watch her carefully. She looks up and asks, "What?"

I hesitate and then I ask her it. "Will you be my girlfriend?"

I'm surprised when she leans in and kisses me. She looks into my eyes and replies. "Of course I would, Peeta."

** THERE IT IS! Okay, so I hoped you guys liked it :D THANKS FOR READING!**


	5. Father's Rules

**You guys are amazing! Okay, so here is another chapter! Thanks for the support and I want to let you guys in on another story that, to me, seems pretty good. The author is GirlonFire10203! It's this great story for the Hunger Games and it'd really mean a lot if you guys would check it out. :-)**

** Father's Rules**

**Katniss' POV:**

The words my father told me still run through my head, making it hard for me to concentrate on my last class of the day. _"Stay away from that boy." _Who am I kidding? Now, I won't be able to stay away from Peeta. A smile creeps up to my face and I can't help but letting it show. Peeta is my boyfriend…and I'm his girlfriend. I never really thought I'd ever have one. But, that only takes Peeta to change everything. The bell rings and I literally jump with a start at the sound of the loud bells. I want more than anything to see Peeta right now. I feel stupid because I just saw him at lunch, and now I'm becoming one of those girls who can't stand to be away from a guy. But Peeta, Peeta is not just a guy.

I throw all my books into my book bag and right when I'm about to leave, I bump into someone; a blond, blue eyed, boy. I immediately smile as he pulls me into a hug. I wrap my arms around his neck and he buries his face into my neck and I can feel his lips curve into a smile. We're so close now that I can almost feel his muscular stomach against mine. He uncovers his face and looks straight into my eyes. His blue eyes sparkle and I can't help but get lost in them. Why does he do that to me? I keep asking myself that over and over before I realize that his lips are softly against mine. I feel flutters in my stomach as he starts kissing me repeatedly. I'm lost in the warmness and sparks that explode in me until I hear a voice that belongs to Coach Higgins.

"I thought I told you two none of that stuff," he says as Peeta and I pull away, taking our time. He coughs and says, "Katniss, you're father is waiting outside with your sister Primrose. Better get out there before he comes in here."

I immediately pull away from Peeta's embrace and peck his lips and say good-bye. If father saw me with Peeta, he'd kill Peeta and probably kill me too. I rush out of school to see the black car that belongs to him. I roll my eyes and enter the car. Right away, he asks, "Were you with that boy?"

I roll my eyes and rudely say, "Yeah, so what. You don't care about what I do."

He still hasn't moved the car and he yells, "I do care a lot more than you think! Stay away from that boy or there will be consequences!"

Prim is listening to her IPod because I'm sure she doesn't want to listen to our argument. I don't think it was the best thing to say, "Make me! I don't care what you say!"

Father takes a deep breath, trying to calm the anger I'm sure is forming in him. He doesn't say anything and the entire ride home is silent and awkward. Father always makes me angry, and ruins my best days. I get out of the car as soon as it stops in our driveway. I barge into the house and run upstairs to my room. I wish I could just escape. I want to see Peeta, but that's the only thing on my mind. Sometimes I find it annoying that every time I think of something, Peeta always comes to mind. Sometimes I don't mind it. Then, father comes into my room.

He sits on my bed where I'm laying and he says, "Please stay away from that boy, he's trouble," he sounds concerned.

I sit up and snap, "No he's not. Why do you even care? You barely care when you head across the country for work instead of staying with your family! Prim needs a father, and you're not there for her!" I snap at him, pointing my finger at him.

He looks ashamed. He gets up and before he goes through the door, he says, "I promise I'll try to be there."

I snicker and say, "Yeah right. I've managed to take care of Prim without you are mother doing any work." He doesn't say anything and he shuts the door lightly.

Night comes quickly and I don't even bother doing my homework. I hear something hit my window and some whispering. I smile because I realize that whisper belongs to Peeta. What is he doing here? Father will kill him. I don't care right now; I just want to see him. I open my window and he smiles, looking up at me. "What are you doing here?"

He smiles and says, "I wanted to see you."

I feel heat press on my cheeks and I smile widely. "Okay, let me get down."

I quietly step out of the window and onto the roof that is next to my window. I close the window and climb down, holding on tightly to the rocky surface of my fireplace. When I get to the bottom, I take Peeta's hand and I ask him where we are going. He smiles and we start running to a small park that barely anyone visits because it's covered by the huge trees. We step between trees and bushes until we get to a beautiful land of green grass, beautiful flowers, and tall and lush trees. I smile as I remember this place when Peeta ran off.

We sit on the grass. I lay my head on his shoulder and it's silent for a long time. Neither of us wants to break the silence. But I can't keep my lips off his. I kiss him, longer and harder than we'd ever kissed. Soon, I'm on top of him, his hands are on my hips, and I desperately want more. We pull away after minutes, breathless, and we just lay there. I have my head on top of his chest. I can hear his steady heart beat. I look at the stars and I think of how nothing can change this happy moment. Of course, only one thing can. I hear someone say, "I thought I'd find you here! Didn't I say to stay away from that boy?"

I hear another voice, "I told you to stay away from that girl and you don't ever listen to me!" I'm afraid I know those voices.

My father's and Peeta's father voice. Peeta and I get off the grass and stand up. He takes my hand and holds it tightly. That's when father reaches for me and starts pulling me away. I struggle to get out of his grip, once I do, I run back to Peeta, only to be stopped by his father. Peeta moves his father out of the way and I give him one last kiss before my father grabs my arm again and pulls me further and further from Peeta. And that's when I hear Peeta say, "Katniss, I love you!"

Father stops dead in his tracks. Turns around, glaring at Peeta. "Don't you ever say that to my daughter!"

I get out of my father's grip and yell back at Peeta. "I love you too."

That's when father says, "That's it. I'm sending you away."

**HAHAHA! CLIFFHANGER: P I don't think I'll be able to post 2 chapters today, due to my stupid teacher and her stupid homework she gives: P Anyways, thanks! If I can post another one, then I will.**


	6. Leaving and Saying Goodbye

**Hey guys! Just wanting to say how happy I am that I'm getting this much reviews! So, here's another chapter! Also, sorry about that cliffhanger thing…it's sort of my thing :-) AND, just a little question…Do you guys remember where Peeta's father threatened to send him to? You might want to remember that for this chapter. **

**Leaving and Saying Goodbye**

**Katniss POV:**

** Two days later…**

_ I haven't seen Peeta, Glimmer, Demeter, or anyone in these two days. Father won't let me leave home. I've called Glimmer and Demeter by the phone to deliver the news. They didn't even want to say anything because they were too shocked. Glimmer has told me about Peeta being sent away as well. My heart breaks as I think about how I'll never see Peeta again, ever. _

I'm inside the house, being yelled at by father. I'm zoned out of this world, still, my father's words block out his other words. _"That's it. I'm sending you away." _Why can't Peeta and I be together? Father has said that he's trouble, but to me, Peeta is not trouble, he makes me happy. Father keeps yelling things at me, but he sees that it's hopeless, so he leaves to make a phone call. I don't bother to yell, argue, or do anything mostly. I stare straight ahead, remembering what Peeta told me, and I said it back. It's not like I don't like it, I love it. I love him. His words remain in my head like my father's. But my father's words are much stronger, so strong they feel like a bullet being shot into my skull, not letting me think straight, only in a blur.

The world seems like a blur right now. Father is sending me away to California to live with my father's sister, which I refuse to call my aunt, Silvia. My cousin, Clove, is the craziest person I met, but that's the only good thing about moving in with Silvia. Clove is my favorite cousin because she's crazy, outgoing, and just plain clever when it comes to pulling jokes on people and lying. She only lies to get through whatever trouble she needs to get out of. But when it's big trouble or when it's going to hurt someone, she doesn't lie.

Who's going to take care of Prim? I'm suddenly worried about Prim and I get up and walk slowly upstairs. I sigh as I hear faded music playing just outside her bedroom door. Prim doesn't like to be yelled at, and don't get me started on how much she hates the sound of people yelling. She usually comes home and turns on her stereo, full blast, and just shuts herself in her room. I don't like it when she does that. It makes me feel as if she's alone with no one to talk to. Sometimes I wonder how school is going for her. Other times I just wish she would talk to me more often.

I open the door to find her on her lilac-colored laptop. She's lying on her bed, her head against the pillow, and she stares at the screen in…no emotion. Her eyebrows don't let me know if she's upset or not. She just stares at the screen of her laptop with no response to my presence in her room. She looks up at me and I think…anger passes over her for a second. Then, she looks back at the screen of her laptop as if she never saw I was there. I sigh and sit on the edge of her bed. She rolls her eyes and put the laptop aside and turns off the stereo with a remote, preparing herself to listen to me talk. She looks at me in annoyance. I don't think I've ever seen her so annoyed. And it surprises me.

"Prim, I…," she cuts me off.

"Don't, Katniss. I get that father is sending you away. I don't want you to think that I can't handle myself without you. I promise to call you every day, maybe even visit you, or whatever. But, couldn't you have just _tried_ to get out of trouble…for me?"

That hurts deeply. Prim thinks I wasn't ever thinking of her. And it makes me feel ashamed to realize that I wasn't thinking about Prim before getting into trouble. All I was thinking about is Peeta. How could I have left my sister alone? I'm sitting here, being rude to my father and telling him that he doesn't care about Prim when I am forgetting about her myself!

I ponder about what to say next. Then, the words just come out. "I'm sorry Prim. I should have thought about the consequences of getting into trouble. I promise that I will call you every day. I won't let this separate us."

She immediately launches herself to hug me. She sobs in our embrace and it makes me tear up too. We are interrupted by my father coming in and saying, "Time to go Katniss."

I hug Prim tighter and kiss her forehead. She gets off the bed also to help with the bags. Once everything is packed, I look around my house, just wondering if I'd never have to leave this place. I take a deep breath and walk out the front door of my house. I see Demeter and Glimmer near the black car, going to be driven by father, which is going to be taking me to the airport. I run to them and hug them.

"Call us every day, Kat," Glimmer says, with tears in her eyes.

I nod and give them one last hug as I hop into the car and shut the door. I look back, tears blurring my vision. Through the window, I see Prim staring at the car as it gets father and father away from her. I see Demeter and Glimmer staring at it also, with sorrowful looks on their faces. Tears start to fall out of my eyes and I cry silently as Manhattan, New York turns into a highway. I look out the window, thinking of all the things I'll be leaving behind. Primrose, my little sister, how is she going to be okay? Demeter and Glimmer, my best friends since I can remember, I'm going to be empty without their jokes and humiliation around. Gale and Cato are probably not going to miss me, and I'm not going to miss them, but it's worth remembering while I still can. And that only leaves Peeta. I wish I could stay in his arms forever. His words come back to me. It hurts and it weighs me down as if someone was dumping bricks all over me. I can't see him anymore, ever. I wonder what he might be doing right now…

**Peeta's POV:**

I'm being driven to the airport right now. I look out the window and all I can think of is Katniss. She's being sent away as well. Her words remain in my skull, bouncing around and hitting the inside of my skull hard. She said them back, and it only makes me sadder because I won't see her, ever. Moving to California to live with my stupid brother Ty could be one of the worst ideas my father could ever have. Mother didn't even refuse to send me away because she believes that living with my brother will be good for me. In other words, they can't wait for me to leave so they can live in peace. My brother didn't even say goodbye, and I don't think he cares that I'll be leaving.

Those thoughts are quickly interrupted by the images of Katniss. I can still feel her lips against mine. Her gray eyes are stamped in my memories. I can't get her out of my mind, and I want to. Her memory just makes me remember how I'm never going to see her again. But as the car moves into the parking lot of the airport, it's no use to forget her because my mind won't stop replaying the feeling I get when her lips touch mine, the images of her smiling and looking into my eyes, and the sound of her laugh.

I get up and the man driving the car hands me my bags. I get inside in a matter of seconds, looking as grim as I'll ever look. And that's when I see her. Or at least I think I see her. Her father and she enter the other entrance on the other far end. Her eyes meet mind and she stops dead in her tracks. I see tears form in her eyes and I shake my head, moving my head towards her father. She knows what I'm nodding to but she doesn't take her eyes off me as her father moves her towards the front desks. The man behind me lightly gets my attention and leads me to some chairs where he tells me to wait.

Her eyes never leave mine. I mouth to her what I said last night. _I love you_. This makes a tear run down her cheek and she mouths the same thing back. The man who drove me here tells me it's time for our flight. I see Katniss leave also, and I'm wondering where she's going. I see her father talk to her and she rolls her eyes and walks away, heading in our direction. Her father follows her. I freeze in my tracks as I realize she's going to be going to California. Maybe I will see her after all.

I keep walking and a smile appears on my face. Nothing's going to keep me away from her. Nothing.

**Hope you guys liked it! REVIEW PLEASEEEE! :-) **


	7. In California & Starting Trouble

**Okay, you guys are awesome, soo freaking awesome. :-) So, I decided to write another chapter because I got like 4 reviews right after I posted my last chapter! AWESOME! Anyways, this story is moving pretty fast, and it's because a lot of the "troublemaking" occurs in California. So, just to let you guys know that. And there's other things I need to let you guys know.**

** There are going to be other characters in the story that were in New York by the way. The characters you've seen when the story took place in New York are not gone yet! People like Prim, Gale, Cato, Glimmer, and Demeter are not to be taken out of the story yet! So, don't think they are! Second, I'm not making only 10 chapters anymore, I'm going to make A LOT more chapters because I'm getting more and more ideas all the time. And lastly, Peeta and Katniss will be going to a new school, and what Katniss' father doesn't know is that Peeta is there. Questions like, "Why doesn't Katniss' father want Peeta and Katniss to be together?" They are going to be answered in later chapters. I assure you, this is only the beginning of what I'm planning to do with this story :-) Thanks for reading. Now, HERE IT IS!**

**In Cali and Starting Trouble**

**Katniss' POV:**

The thought of going to school makes me sick. I've been in California for about a week now. If I get into trouble now, I don't know what father will do with me. He managed to send me away from Prim and my best friends. Is it that bad if a daughter hates her father so much? Hate is a strong and big word. I don't like to use against my father. He thinks he knows what's best for me and he doesn't understand my reasons for misbehaving. He probably thinks that Peeta is the cause of my attitude and behavior. I don't understand why he doesn't let Peeta and me be together. A smile appears on my face when I think of Peeta. He gave me his phone number on the airplane. It was a lot of trouble though.

**FLASHBACK:**

We were sitting on five seats from each other from the back. I kept turning around and father didn't even notice. My father was next to me and Peeta was sitting next to a man I don't quite recognize. We kept exchanging glances and from time to time, he'd smile. I don't know what was going through his mind at that time, but when my father rushed to the bathroom, I busted out laughing. He put something in my father's drink to make him use the bathroom. He then sat next to me in the seat that belonged to my father. The man who sat next to Peeta doesn't recognize me and he doesn't stop Peeta. The only reason that is, is because I don't know what Peeta did to him to make him fall into a deep sleep. Right when he sat next to me, I pressed my lips against his. He smiled and hugged me while we are sitting.

"Hope you don't mind, but your father's going to be in there for a while," he smiled, innocently.

I laughed softly and said, "As long as I get to see you, I don't care."

He smiled and kissed me for a long time. After a few minutes, he passed me his phone number and I passed mine to him. He makes a funny look on his face. I laughed and wrapped my arms around his neck. He pressed his lips to mine and I felt that spark and flutter in my stomach again. All my worries were gone until he pulled away because we heard the toilet flush. I laughed as he made his way back to his seat, covered his face with a magazine, and put headphones on. My father comes back to see me smiling. He looks at me confused and I lied. "I'm just amused by these stupid gossip magazines. I think I'm going to see a lot of "too-good-for-you" girls in California."

He smiled and he seemed to believe me. "Well, there are also a lot of normal and good girls there, not all of them are like that."

I smiled and said, "Yeah, I guess you're right."

**NOW:**

I'm walking down the street I usually been going through with Clove. Clove chatters on about how sweet Peeta is and how lucky I am to have him because all the girls are already talking about him. It's true. Peeta has been all that the girls from Bridge Way High School can talk about. It makes me mad that some of the girls actually try to flirt with him. Peeta is a new kid, and already he has made a couple of friends. I, on the other hand, stick with Clove's friends. They all seem to be like Clove and me.

They're troublemaking students, ignorant, and when it comes to throwing practical jokes on someone, they're amazing at it. Just this week, I've managed to be moved to the front of the class by our teacher, Mr. Walter, in math class. I don't want to cause as much trouble as I used to because now I'm thinking of how bad things can get, from how bad they are already. Peeta see each other around school a lot. He doesn't care about the girls and their flirting. All he does is brush them off and walk away, only to let them know that he's with me by planting a kiss right on my lips in front of them. I punch him playfully all the time he does that. All he says is, "Well, babe," he says, emphasizing the word "babe", "everyone needs to know that you're mine."

We are ten minutes away from school now. I laugh as Clove says, "No joke, Katniss! These girls are like crazy for One Direction!"

**A/N: HEHEHEHE! One Direction :-) btw please tell me if it's bad idea to bring in famous people. BUT, they're not going to me in the story though; they're just going to be mentioned.**

"Well, they're pretty obsessed with them. They freak out every time their songs are being played during lunch time," she says, almost as if she's annoyed.

I love Clove. She's the best cousin, not only because she can make me laugh, but because she's not as girly and dramatic as some other girls are. Her friend and I have been becoming good friends. But, no one will ever replace my best friends, Demeter and Glimmer.

We get to school and we're walking down the hallways. I smile as I see a blond boy walk beside me. My smile gets wider as Peeta walks even closer to me in the hallways. He grabs my hand and Clove grins. "Hey Katniss, I'm going to head to my locker now, see ya'll later." She walks in the opposite direction and leaves me alone with Peeta. I smile as he places a kiss on my cheek.

As we walk to my locker, he says, "Soo…what class do you have know?"

I sigh and say, "Math class…my worst class yet."

He smiles and asks, "And why is that?"

I smile back, knowing what he wants me to say. I won't just say it because he wants me to, I will say it only because it is true. "Because you're not there," I say, smiling as he places a quick kiss on my lips. He goes to his locker and says goodbye. He has science class with Mrs. Edwin. She's not mean, but she's not nice either.

I walk into the room to be greeted by one of Clove's friends, Haley Wilton. She has red hair, green eyes that are greener than grass, and light skin. She smiles and pats the seat next to her. I smile and take it. We always sit near the back because we hate the girls who sit in the front. They all flirt with Peeta and they get on Clove's, mine, and Haley's nerves. I don't like them at all. In other words…I loathe them.

The class goes by quickly and I'm glad it did. Peeta and I have the next class together along with Clove. Our next class is social studies. I like it because, unlike Mrs. Cora, our teacher is pretty nice. She always takes her time teaching us and making sure we get the subject. She doesn't yell, but if you get on her nerves she will yell at the top of her lungs.

I say goodbye to Haley and head to social studies. I'm on my way to social studies when I see Amber Addams and her stupid twin friends, Ashley and Madison Swell. They laugh at me and I stop dead on my tracks. Amber snickers and says, "So hot Mellark is going out with this girl? He must feel bad for her."

A crowd starts to gather around and laugh. She said it pretty loud. It pisses me off and I snap, "Are you that jealous?"

The crowd laughs even harder and Amber spits, "Isn't someone snappy? Maybe we should call you Miss Snap-An-Ugly."

I laugh evilly at her stupid name. "Well, isn't someone being creative? Why don't you stop being a sissy and get closer and say it to my face!" I'm extremely loud and the crowd gets larger.

Amber's perfect jet black hair shines in the light. Her really dark eyes glow with anger and she steps forward, her nose almost touching mine. "Bitch."

I angrily grab her hair and slam her to the floor. She trips me and I fall on the floor along with her. She gets on top of me and she throws weak punches repeatedly at my face. I blood drips from my mouth. And realizing that makes me furious. I scream in anger and punch her so hard she gets off me and cries in pain. She holds her face and stands up. I stand up, wiping the blood off my mouth. She screams loudly as the crowd yells, "FIGHT!"

She launches herself at me and I find myself on the floor again, this time I'm on top of her, punching her with all my anger out. That's when I feel the arms go around my waist, and they strongly pull me from Amber. He whispers in my ears calming words. I breathe in and out. I yell at him to let go of me but he pulls me away from the crowd that now is focusing on Amber and her bloody face.

"Katniss, stop it, now. You don't want to start any trouble," Peeta says, setting me down on the grass in front of the school.

I groan loudly in frustration. He pulls me close to him and I immediately start talking about how angry I am, how I want to kill that Amber, and how I want so bad to have Glimmer and Demeter here. He holds me very tight and shouts, "Katniss!" I shut up because I've never heard him shout at me. He looks into my eyes and sighs, "Do you realize you've gotten yourself into trouble, again. And that your father will be even more upset with you…"

I stop and think about it. I start to insult myself on how stupid I am and he has to shout again to get my attention again. "I'm so stupid, Peeta. I just got so angry and she started to insult Clove and…"

He cuts me off with a soft kiss and says, "You're not stupid. Let's just hope you don't get punished too hard for this, baby."

I can't help but let the corners of my lips curve because when Peeta calls me his "baby" it makes me laugh. But, I know this isn't a time to smile so I quickly hide it. I burry my face into his chest and I hear our Principal's voice.

"Ms. Everdeen, in my office, NOW."


	8. The Reason & the Deal

**HI! I'm back! Sorry it took me so long to update today. I updated my other story. This chapter is about why Katniss' father doesn't want her to be with Peeta. Anyways, here it is! **

**The Reason & the Deal**

**Katniss' POV:**

I'm sitting on my bed in my room. Mr. Nixon, my principal, suspended me for two days. I think it's unfair that Amber didn't get suspended. It's probably because she's the one that got her face rearranged. Hoping that father forgives me, I text message Peeta.

_**Me**__: Hi 3 _

_**Peeta**__: Hi :-)…So, in trouble yet O.o_

_**Me**__: No, not really, though I know I am going to be. -_-_

_**Peeta**__: Wish you hadn't done that :-( _

_**Me:**__ Ugh, can we please change the subject._

_**Peeta:**__ What are you doing?_

I laugh at his fail attempt to change the subject, though he is trying to.

_**Me**__: Nothing, waiting to get punished O.O _

_**Peeta:**__ Well, I tried. Anyways…have you talked to Prim yet?_

_**Me:**__ Yeah, she says Rue has been keeping her company._

_**Peeta:**__ Well that's good. I got to go; my brother's coming in my room. Bye, babe._

_**Me**__: Bye :-) _

I sigh as I try to think of something to do in this boring house. I'm at Silvia's house (where father stays when he goes to California). Silvia's a strict woman, she's almost scary. Almost. Clove enters my room- more like barging in- and sits on the edge of my bed, waiting for me to explain what happened.

Before I can even get started, Silvia comes in and tells Clove to leave. I know what this woman's going to say, and I don't want to hear it. "Katniss, what were you thinking?" Her voice doesn't sound mean or anything, but I know she's dying to yell at me.

"She's a very…," she cuts me off.

"I know those types of girls, and that's why I'm not telling your father about this," I'm shocked and she laughs. "Katniss, I know you think I'm a very mean and strict woman, but I just don't want you to get into trouble because things will go bad for you in the future. When I was your age, I used to be a troublemaker."

I slightly smile and ask, "Oh, really?" I sound very interested and it makes her smile.

"Yeah, I was. Clove over here is one of those girls. I guess you Everdeen girls are big troublemakers. Anyways, when I was your age, I got into a lot of fights, I used to pull many pranks on people, and I used to backtalk to my parents a lot. But, my parents were telling me the truth, not trying to kill my fun. That's the same with your father. I had to take eight years of college because I failed a lot of my classes in high school. Your father doesn't want you to do the same. He works hard to keep you, Prim, and your mother in a house, with food, and water. He may leave a lot, but that's because he's working his ass off for you guys. You have to understand that Katniss."

I sigh and ask, "I never really thought of it like that." I never did. I usually thought my father would leave because he never really cared about us or want to spend time with us. Prim always needed him there, but I don't get why he couldn't take a break and spend it with his family. He's missed three of Prim's birthdays and five of mine. Prim doesn't say it, but I know she hates when father has to leave. I sit there, waiting for her to continue when another question pops into my head. "So, that's why he doesn't want me with Peeta? Because he thinks Peeta's trouble for me?"

She shakes her head. "No, that goes back years ago when your father and Peeta's father were best friends. They have this grudge they never let go of." I raise my eyebrow and she continues. "When they were in high school, Peeta's father used to get into trouble big time. Your father would too. But, when your father met this girl, who became his girlfriend, Peeta's father stole her from him. It's this rivalry thing I don't really know the details to. But, that's what happened. Your father and Peeta's father hate each other. And they want nothing to do with each other. So, your father seeing that you get into trouble a lot, and you're with Peeta, it really got him to be very…"mean" as you think it."

My eyes widen and I find myself groaning in frustration. "Are you serious? I cannot believe this! That is no reason to separate me from Prim, my best friends, and Peeta! That's his problem, not mine. He can't just send me away across the country because of this stupid rivalry thing!"

She nods and says, "I tried talking to your father many times," she looks at me suspiciously, "and, I know Peeta's here anyway. The first day you went to school, I saw him. So don't play that with me, Katniss," she smiles.

I'm surprised at her sudden kindness. She seems so…different and playful. I'm starting to like her, and I don't think I mind calling her mu aunt anymore. "This is just unreasonable. He took me away from my best friends and Prim for this! This doesn't make any sense."

Silvia nods and says, "Well, that's your father. Anyways, I just want to let you in a deal," I look at her, waiting for her to continue. "I'll let you see Peeta and I won't tell your father, if you promise to do well in academic areas in your school."

I ponder about this for a minute. I'm terribly at social studies. But, I'm good with math and science, considering that I have a lot of experience with measurements, numbers, and pounds because of my pranks. And I'm very good with chemicals, which we study in science class, because I mix many things for pranks. I think I can do this. Without thinking about it even further, I say, "Deal."

She smiles and gets out of my room. Right when she leaves, I pick up the phone and call Peeta. But before I can dial the numbers, Clove comes barging in, talking loudly about how much she hates Amber and her stupid crew. I put down the phone and turn my attention to whatever it is she wants. Clove asks me what happened and I don't hesitate to tell her about everything and the deal I made with her mother.

"Seriously? Mother never has been so kind with me like that. Huh, it's probably because I never try in academic areas in school," she says it very simple and careless.

I laugh and say, "Well, maybe you should try and she'll probably let you date that boy you're always making fun of."

Her cheeks turn red and she shouts, "I do not like him! In fact, you said it yourself, I make fun of him, I don't dream about him."

I raise an eyebrow and I laugh at the memory because it reminds me of Demeter and Glimmer. "Clove, I know you like him, that's what some girls do when they like a guy. Back in New York, my friends used to do the same thing."

She rolls her eyes playfully and says, "Well, I'm different. And, did you hear about that party Amber's throwing?" She smiles mischievously.

I return the smile and say, "Looks like we have a party to crash."

She nods and says, "I think this will be fun."

I laugh and ask, "What time is it at?"

"It's at eight at night."

I nod and add, "That's perfect. Bring Haley with us….," I say, while thinking about something else.

Clove smiles and asks, "What are you thinking, Katniss?"

"This will be the best revenge ever."

** . . .**

I'm not allowed to go back to school yet, and it's driving me crazy. Peeta promised to come by and take me out somewhere, if he can get out of soccer practice. Peeta may be a troublemaker, but he loves sports. So it didn't shock me when he told me that he signed up for soccer and he got in. He's so athletic that he can get into any sport and be very good at it. Clove wanted stay home, but I told her to go to school or I won't help her to get Amber back.

I'm thinking about the party we are about to ruin. I miss my friends so much. I bet Demeter and Glimmer would love to crash this party with me. My thoughts are interrupted by the sound of the doorbell and Silvia calling my name excitedly. I walk downstairs and when I look in the doorway, I see two people who I thought I'd never see for a long time.

I see Demeter and Glimmer.

**HOPE YOU GUYS LIKED IT. Seriously, I told you I was going to get Glimmer and Demeter back into the story! And with this party going on…Katniss, Glimmer, Demeter, Clove, and Haley might become really good friends. Next chapter's about the party crashing! Also, some shocking things happen from Peeta's point of view! Can you guess? A little similar to Katniss'! **


	9. Troublemaking Once Again

**OMG! I'm almost to 70 reviews! You guys keep it going and I promise to make two chapters a day if we reach 70-90 reviews! I LOVE YOU GUYS! So, here it is :-) Just to let you guys know, most of you guys have guessed that Gale and Cato will return, but that's not just what is surprising. So, read on to find out what ELSE is surprising.**

** The song is "Your Love I My Drug" by Kesha **

**Troublemaking Once Again**

**Peeta's POV:**

I'm heading home after my soccer practice. Thank god it's spring break. I promised Katniss that I'd take her somewhere after soccer practice, but I need to shower up first. The way home isn't far, so I'm glad because I don't have a car. My brother doesn't let me use my car and he has like seven different cars. My brother Ty is rich. He has a huge mansion with an enormous pool in the back. His wife is a gold-digger. Marisol is a nasty, mean, and selfish woman. I don't tell my brother that but one of these days it's going to slip out of my mouth.

Ty is blinded by love, and he's blinder than a bat. He's in love with that witch and it's just very wrong. I thought my brother was smarter than that. I wanted to tell him, but then I thought about it. Who am I to break his heart?

Ty is not hostile, but not pleasant either. When I enter the huge house, I'm immediately yelled at by Marisol. "Peeta, you're all muddy! What are you doing dirtying this house! It was immaculate before you got here!" She screams in frustration.

I roll my eyes and head upstairs. I shower and wear jeans with a navy blue button shirt. I hear the doorbell ring and Ty yelling my name. I sigh and head downstairs two see my best friends in the doorway. I smile as they look at me grinning. They give me a "manly" hug and we sit outside by the pool.

"What are you guys doing here," I ask them.

"Spring break, dude, our parents said it was fine for us to come and visit you and we asked your dad and he said okay," Cato explains, looking around the backyard and at the huge pool. He then adds, "Dude, you could throw a sick party here; the girls, music, and the girls." He laughs.

Gale and I join him and I roll my eyes. "The witch won't let me," I tell them.

Gale makes a face and says, "So, Katniss really is here?" I turn to look at him and nod. He smiles so widely that it almost scares me. That smile means that he's probably going to say something that'd make me angry. "Have you slept with her yet?" He and Cato laugh very loudly.

I shake my head and glare at them. Then something I was thinking about back in New York pops into my head. "Well, no I haven't. But I bet you've slept with Glimmer." Gale stops laughing and Cato laughs even harder as Gale glares at me. "And Cato, you've slept with Demeter I bet you." He stops laughing and glares at me along with Gale. I smile kindly and they shut up.

We are talking about how we've spent days before Spring Break when the witch, Marisol, comes up to us. I turn to pay attention to whatever she wants. "Peeta, I'm glad your friends are here. Amber asked me, about two days ago, that she'd like to throw a party and I gave her permission to throw it here. So, she'll be throwing a party here later on at night," she doesn't even let me respond because she leaves into the house again.

I hear Gale and Cato cheer because there's going to be a party. Though I know Katniss won't like this…

Oh great, Amber is throwing a party. And I bet, there's going to be some party crashing in it too. I know it has to be with Katniss. I know she's not so forgiving, so she must have something planned. All I know is Amber's going to piss me off, very easily like she always does.

**Katniss' POV:**

Glimmer and Demeter agreed to crash this party. They already hate Amber because what I've said. We're sitting in the living room and Haley has just come. She agreed to help us too, and she seemed a little _too _excited. I bet she and Clove have built a lot of hatred towards Amber. I've been here weeks and I probably have the same amount of hatred towards Amber. Glimmer says we need water balloons, caramel to put in the balloons, and we need stink bombs. Clove and Haley laugh when she says stink bombs. They tell us that she knows a perfect place we can get those. So, we head out to buy supplies.

Clove says it will only take about ten minutes to get there walking. We nod and start to walk. "Where's the party again, Clove?" I ask.

"It's at Marisol's place. I know where that is," she explains.

I nod my head and Glimmer says, "Hey, do you guys think it'd be a good idea to fill the water balloons with something that really stinks AND the caramel…AND the water?"

We all laugh at Glimmer's focus and planning. Glimmer has always been so focused on pranks and other mischievous things. She smiles and shrugs innocently. I'm suddenly thinking about Prim. What is she doing right now? I remember what she told me about at least trying to stay out of trouble. I don't think this would get me in to too much trouble. I just hope it's worth it.

We come back home with balloons, caramel, stink bomb from this awesome store Clove showed us, and, just to make it stink, some type of chemical with smashed onions and vinegar. Haley gets to work filling the water balloons. Clove and Demeter get to work with mixing the chemicals, and Glimmer and I count the stink bombs. We have about five of them and I think that's going to be enough. This would probably take weeks to get the smell out of that woman's house. I feel bad for anyone who's going to be living there.

I remember that Peeta said he'd take me out. I check my phone and I see a text message that explains that Gale and Cato are here. I smile to myself and hope that they're at that party just for the chance that they'd get hit with one of our stink bombs or balloons. Glimmer helps Clove with the chemicals and it makes me sick because I can smell that from the upstairs, and they're in the kitchen.

I decide to go downstairs and help the others, but apparently they were already done. We grab things and put them in bags. The balloons stink and it almost makes me vomit when I dropped one and it splattered all over the floor, leaving a bad smell to pour into the kitchen. Glimmer makes a vomiting sound and the rest of us laugh. We put the balloons in a bucket. We go to the garage and find about three bikes. I look at Clove and she shrugs, probably not remembering she had these. We each get on one, and some of us have to share a bike.

We're riding through the neighborhood and I ask Clove for the time. I'm riding the bike while she stands on it behind me. "It's eight forty-five. This is good because people are already there."

I nod and we head for the house. It takes us about ten minutes to get there. I feel that rush and excitement I always feel when I'm going to do something I know will be bad. But this, this is different. This is revenge. But something told me that this place is not where I should be. Ignore that because, because this really isn't where I should be. I mean, it is party crashing…you shouldn't be there in the first place. It's not that I want to get into trouble; it's just that I hate being made a fool of, and I've had enough of those types of girls like Amber. This is simply my revenge, nothing else. And it's probably for the laugh and fun of it.

We can hear the music, we can hear bottles clashing together, and we hear talking. We look at each other and start our plan. I don't know we didn't do this earlier, but this is us. This is me, Glimmer, and Demeter. We never plan things, and when we don't, we never get caught and we get that exciting feeling. I've never been this excited besides when I was seven on Christmas morning. I know it's pathetic to look back at Christmas morning and how I was so excited. But I'm comparing this feeling with another. That's when I hear Gale and Cato's voice as they walk out the door, followed by a pissed off Peeta. We hide in the bushes while we squat and watch them closely as they stop and Gale and Cato try to calm down Peeta.

"I want to kill that bastard and that son of a bitch Amber," Peeta says. I've never seen him so angry and I want to get over there and speak up, because I'm wondering what happened that made him so pissed off.

"It's not worth it. Leave him alone. That girl won't do anything," Gale says, trying to calm down Peeta, and it isn't working.

"Yeah, do you really think she do that?" Cato was now sitting on the steps. My head was going in every direction. What's going on? What are they talking about? Why is Peeta so upset? It's not worth thinking because Clove screams because the liquid in a water balloon went down her arm, and it smelled disgusting.

Peeta, Gale and Cato jolt their heads our way. We push back but I can tell Peeta already knows who it is. I see him wave at me with a smile. Glimmer and Demeter have their eyes filled with shock because they didn't expect to see Gale and Cato. I want to laugh, but my eyes are on Peeta who is now not so angry. We give up and sigh. We stand up and walk towards them. I see Peeta's face brighten when he sees the balloons and other things. Gale and Cato stand up as soon as they see Demeter and Glimmer. I roll my eyes and walk towards Peeta, with Clove and Haley right behind me. He raises and eyebrow playfully and says, "Planning to crash a party?" I immediately smile with my teeth showing. I nod and he chuckles. "Good, mind if I join you?" He asks.

Clove and Haley speak simultaneously. "GREAT!"

I turn to face them; they turn to Gale and Cato and ask, "Do you guys want to join our party crashing? Or are you guys too chicken to crash that party?" They give each other weird looks as if to say stop copying me. I roll my eyes and turn to Peeta. He smiles and grabs a balloon from the bucket I am carrying. He immediately makes a disgusted face. Clove, Haley, and I burst into laughter.

"What did you guys put in these, onions and…caramel?" He asks. I nod and that's when he picks up another. "Great, the two things my brother's wife loathes. Think she'd care if we stunk up her house?"

I laugh and then I realize Peeta must live here. We sit down, talking for a while about what exactly are we going to gain from this. I immediately blurt out revenge with a mischievous grin on my face. They laugh and we start to walk to the back door. We quietly enter the house, on which Peeta just barges in. I immediately see some of the girls look at Peeta. I get closer to him and this acts as a warning to other girls. They look away and occasionally glance at me, looking at me as if I wasn't good enough. I roll my eyes in hatred.

These girls are such idiots that they didn't even notice the things in our hands until we started throwing them and flinging them. Some people were laughing and some were disgusted. While some ran to the bucket and threw other balloons as some people, I kept thinking about what Peeta was so angry about. I'll ask him later, right now I'm crashing a party and this is great.

The smell in the room was terrible. Although some were laughing, others were screaming and yelling things at us. That's when I heard Amber's scream and she glared at me. I smirked and next thing I know, she's on top if me, throwing other weak punches at me. She yells, "YOU BITCH!"

I roll my eyes and punch her on the jaw. She gets off me and Peeta helps me stand. I growl and throw a water balloon at Amber's face, and I think Peeta actually smiled. Gale and Cato were still throwing balloons along with others. The music was still on and I can hear it as we keep throwing balloons, stink bombs up the stairs and just going crazy. The song sounded familiar and I remember hearing it with Demeter and Glimmer once as we went to the beach one day in summer.

_Maybe I need some rehab,  
>Or maybe just need some sleep<br>I've got a sick obsession,  
>I'm seeing it in my dreams<em>

I'm throwing balloons ever where. There are many people who were screaming, now throwing balloons also. Amber was trying to get me, but I got her a couple of times. She was frustrated. But I didn't care, I was having a blast.

_I'm looking down every alley,  
>I'm making those desperate calls<br>I'm staying up all night hoping,  
>Hit my head against the walls<em>

It was hilarious when Amber slipped and fell on her ass. I was having a great time. Peeta picked me up and used me as a shield, letting me drown in the filth that people threw at me. I screamed and laughed as I begged him to let me go. This is the most fun I've had. Glimmer and Demeter were with Cato and Gale, as usual. They were dodging balloons and that's when Clove came from the back door with a hose. And it's probably connected to some water source.

_What you've got boy is hard to find  
>I Think about it all about it all the time<br>I'm all strung up my heart is fried  
>I just can't get you off my mind<em>

Clove held the hose tight as it soaked us and some of the furniture in the house. Everyone was laughing as the water soaked them and hit them with a lot of force.

_Because your love, your love, your love, is my drug  
>Your love your love your love<br>I said your love, your love, your love, is my drug  
>Your love your love your love<em>

_Won't listen to any advice, mamma's telling me to think twice  
>But left to my own devices I'm addicted it's a crisis!<em>

_My friends think I've gone crazy, my judgment is getting kinda hazy  
>my status is gonna be affected if I keep it up like a love sick crackhead<em>

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Gale kiss Glimmer's cheek, and she blushed very hard. I laughed as Peeta hugged me, keeping me from getting hit with the balloons and taking the blows himself this time.__

_What you've got boy is hard to find  
>Think about it all about it all the time<br>I'm all strung up my heart is fried  
>I just can't get you off my mind<em>

_Because your love, your love, your love, is my drug  
>Your love your love your love<br>I said your love, your love, your love, is my drug  
>Your love your love your love<em>

Peeta smiles at me and kisses me on the lips. The same warmth passes over me and it makes the stench of onion and caramel go away. I wrap my arms around his neck and we stay like that until the hose wets me right on the back. I turn to see Clove laughing and I roll my eyes. I look over to Amber and she looks…hurt. But, that evil glare hasn't really been wiped off her face. And God I want to do it myself.

_I don't care what people say  
>The rush is worth the price I pay<br>I get so high when you're with me  
>But crash and crave you when you are away<em>

_So I got a question;  
>Do you want to have a summer party in my basement?<br>Do I make your heart beat like an 808 drum?  
>Is my love, your drug?<br>(Huh) Your drug? (Huh) your drug? (Huh) your drug?  
>Is my love, your drug?<em>

Peeta throws a stink bomb in Cato's and Demeter's direction. It explodes and I laugh as they drown in the terrible smell. Demeter laughs at Cato and Cato pulls her back into the foggy smoke that is filth.

_Because your love, your love, your love, is my drug  
>Your love your love your love<br>I said your love, your love, your love, is my drug  
>Your love your love your love (x2)<em>

_Heyyy heyyy your love, your love, your love, your love, (whispered) is my drug  
>I like your beard.<em>

And that's when I hear the loudest and most vile scream ever. It makes me shudder and I see that she walks towards Peeta and slaps him square in the face. Amber tells her that it wasn't his fault. She points to us girls; Me, Clove, Haley, Glimmer, and Demeter. We all stand together and the woman, Marisol, glares at us. Her eyes widen as she sees me. I feel my heart beat faster because I know she recognizes me. She raises and eyebrow and says, "Katniss Everdeen?" She gives a small wink at Amber and Amber smirks. Marisol walks up to me and whispers, "Now you're in serious trouble."

I should have known something like this was going to happen. She screamed at the rest of the people to leave. They all leave except for Amber. Peeta and the rest of us sit on the dirty and filthy couches as Marisol glares at us, more to me than anybody. She says to me, "I bet your father might want to hear about this."

She doesn't call my father. She tells everyone to leave or go outside and wait to be hosed down with the hose. Marisol sits there, looking at me carefully. I stare at her with an annoyed look on my face. I sigh and my eyes widen as she says, "I won't tell you father if you break up with Peeta, or I will make Peeta's life miserable."

**HOPE YOU GUYS LIKED! AND YOU BETTER BECAUSE MY FINGERS HURT BECUASE THIS IS THE LONGEST CHAPTER I'VE WRITTEN FOR THIS STORY! RIGHT NOW, I'M JUMPING UP AND DOWN BECAUSE I FNISHED THIS! I was so excited to update and I know that it took me a while because this chapter is the longest chapter I've made for this story. Hope you can forgive me and I hope you enjoyed!**


	10. Everything About You

**Hi guys, very sorry about not updating. My laptop is broken and I have to use another computer, which means that I have to have an argument with my brothers about the computers. Anyways, enjoy the 10th chapter! I'm sorry it's kind of short, but I need to do it this way because I only have a few hours on the computer until I get my laptop fixed again. Sorry, but please review!**

** Song "Everything About You"- One Direction I changed the lyrics a bit to fit the characters. It's only the words like "girl". **

**Everything About You**

I'm sitting in this woman's living room, with my mouth wide open, and my eyes widen with shock. I still can't process what she just told me. My mind is trying to figure it out, but it's crashing. I shake my head and all I can manage to say is, "What?"

She rolls her eyes in annoyance and before she leaves, "Leave the boy alone, Amber deserves him more than you do." Then, she leaves outside.

I hear her yelling and Clove, Haley, Glimmer, and Demeter come out from outside. They look angry and walk right out the door. Glimmer, just to let out her anger, squeezes her hair to get some of the nasty liquid out of her hair, and makes it spill on her couch. She looks up at me with nothing but anger and fire in her eyes. She says, "Let's go. If I stay here for more than ten more seconds, I'll set fire to her house."

They must not know what the witch said to me. She's threatening me with Peeta's life. And she's making a deal with me too. I want to scream. The worst part is that she's with Amber. What's that about Amber being better for Peeta? I gulp as I realize she must be on Amber's side, trying to figure out a way to separate me from Peeta. That's what Amber always wanted, and that's what Marisol might want too. How can I leave Peeta? That's impossible for me. I can never do that, and I know it because my heart is already starting to hurt with pain because of the decision I have to make. Then, the hurt is replaced with anger. I don't care what that witch says to me. I'm not going to break up with Peeta. I'm pretty sure Peeta can take care of himself, and his strong. He's stubborn alright. But, he's strong and that witch can't break him. So, I try my best to forget about Marisol's deal and threat.

The only thing I can't get out of my head is what Marisol said about me not deserving him. Is it true? I'm I really not good for him? I don't want to think it, but it makes sense to me. I just got Peeta into more trouble, and myself in more trouble. I kick myself mentally because I wasn't thinking straight. It was fun, but it also makes me think about how brainless it was. Maybe I shouldn't have done this. Was it really worth it? Now that I know how that witch really is, it makes me feel proud about the work we did with stinking up her house. Peeta lives in this house too, but he didn't even care. The thing is, I can't get it out of my head. I don't deserve Peeta. I just know it. He deserves someone who'd lead him in the right track. And that's not me because I lead him to more trouble. He doesn't seem to care, but it's my fault he left New York, it's my fault he left the opportunity of playing football in school, and it's my fault that this witch will try to make his life here miserable.

It's not just that. I have done many things to hurt my family too. I managed to separate myself from Primrose. I realize that I've been pushing her away ever since I started to get in trouble in every school I've been to. That makes me feel guilty. And I am guilty. When I get home, I need to talk to Prim.

We're walking down the street, soaked. On the way, I tell the girls what Marisol said to me. This seems to make them even more angry. I am angry too, but this is what we get for crashing a party we were sure was going to bring us problems. I don't tell them that though. We get to my house. Glimmer and Demeter go back to where they're staying. Demeter's older sister lives in California and they're staying with her. They leave for their house and Haley leaves to her house. I go inside and Clove goes straight upstairs, angrily. What did Marisol say to them? I push the thought aside, and go upstairs and shower. The warms water manages to get the nasty smell off me, but I use scented soap just to make sure it's gone forever.

When I get dressed, I lay on my bed, staring at the ceiling. I sigh as I think about what I'm going to do. I remember I need to call Prim, so I grab my phone and dial the number. Prim picks up and I can tell, from her voice, that's she's happy. This immediately brings a smile to my face. Primrose tells me she misses me and it just makes me hate myself a lot more for getting in so much trouble. The fact that Marisol can tell Peeta's father that I'm in California makes me fear that Peeta might have to leave. I take a breath and leave that thought because I need to focus on Prim. I miss Prim a lot more than she might think. Primrose always knew what to say and it tears want to escape my eyes because Prim isn't here, but I can tell her my problems.

I tell her about what happened. She sighs as I tell her about the party. When I get to the Marisol part, she says, "Katniss, you realize how bad things can get when you get into that trouble!"

Her voice sounds very motherly and as if she's giving me a lecture. It makes me smile and I keep the act as if she was my mother. "Well, I'm sorry, mom Primrose."

I hear her laugh and it makes me smile widely because I miss hearing that laugh. "Katniss, I'm not playing!"

"Then why are you laughing?" I say, questioningly.

She gives up and laughs. "Oh, shut up."

I gasp dramatically and say, "How dare you tell me you shut up?"

Prim can keep up with a joke just fine. And what she says next surprises me a bit. "Oh, does baby Katniss need her mommy because she's feeling insulted?" She laughs, teasingly.

I laugh and say, "No, and isn't it past your bedtime?"

"No," she says, defensively.

"Primrose Everdeen! Go to bed!"

"Fine."

We hang up after I say goodnight. Prim's voice made me forget everything. But right when I hung up, it all came back to me. Where I was. What I've done. And the decisions I have to make. I sigh and while staring at the ceiling, I look up and smile as I think of Peeta. There's nothing that can separate me from him. I need to tell him what Marisol said. But, will that make everything worse? I don't care about this right now. At the moment, I'm thinking about Peeta, and only him. I fall asleep, thinking about him.

"Katniss, wake up! We're going to the beach. Go get ready!" I hear Clove yell, right in my ear.

I sit up, looking as meanly as possible at Clove. I hate being woken up with way. The only person who is allowed to do that is Prim. And only her. She has a sorry look on her face, but that fades quickly as she pulls me from my arms and tells me to get ready because we're going to the beach. I don't like the beach, but I just want to get away, so, that's seems like a good idea.

I'm downstairs in a flash because of Clove's constant yelling. I see Glimmer and Demeter in the kitchen, sitting on the counters. They're wearing shorts, really short, shorts. Their tops are bikini tops. I roll my eyes and laugh at them. They turn around and roll their eyes. I swear, they do that so much that one day their eyes are going to stay that way. Clove is wearing shorts and a t-shirt. That's her alright. She doesn't like bikinis. I don't either, but by the look on Demeter's face, she shakes her head disappointingly. I shrug and she says, "You realize Peeta's going too."

I haven't realize Haley is in the kitchen, playing something that sounds like Angry Birds. I look at myself briefly. I'm wearing a t-shirt with jeans that go down to my knees. My hair is in a high pony tail. I don't' really care, but something makes me feel uneasy. I rethink about what I'm wearing. But then, I realize how pathetic it is so I reply, a little unsure, "So."

Glimmer laughs and says, "That's why," she gets off the counter, "we brought you a bikini!" Her voice sounds a little evil and it makes my shiver because I don't like where their plan is going. She smiles and says, "It's black. It's not a girly color, so you won't have any problem wearing it, right?" I was going to protest but Clove grabbed the bathing suit from Glimmer's hands and shoved it into mine. I sigh and reluctantly change into it. When I come downstairs, they're mouths open.

I glare at them because I know they're doing this to bother me. Demeter says, "You look hot." I almost growl at her. I remind myself to calm down. I don't like it, so I wear my t-shirt and my booty-shorts, Glimmer says, over it.

Clove grabs our bags and sets them near the door for when we leave. We eat a snack quickly and we hear a car horn outside the house. Glimmer excitedly opens the door and waits for us to go outside. Before I walk out, I whisper to her, "I'll get you for this."

She smiles and says, "You're on."

I see Cato's driving the car. Gale sits in the front, arguing with Peeta about the front seat. I smile as I hear the argue. Clove goes inside first, followed by Glimmer who goes near the front to be near Gale. This gives me a good idea of what to use against her. Demeter sits with Clove near the back, leaving an open seat next to Peeta. Haley sits next to Clove. Right when he looks at me, he stops arguing with Gale and smiles. Gale immediately laughs, earning himself a punch from Peeta in the arm. Gale shuts up and Cato shouts at all of us to shut up and if we're ready to go. Peeta kisses my cheek and as I put my seatbelt on.

The drive is crazy and at one point, a song comes on that makes Glimmer and Demeter freak out and sing to it. Clove and Haley laugh and sing along. I laugh a long with the boys. There's no way I'm going to sing, especially in front of Peeta. I remember telling him that I love music and I know he remembers because he gives me a look. I immediately shake my head and he pouts playfully. This makes Glimmer poke me in the stomach and she yells over the music. "C'mon Katniss! You're a great singer!"

I roll my eyes and take a deep breath. Either way, I'm going to have to sing. So, I don't care anymore. Cato turns the radio up more and I start to sing.

_You know I've always got your back, boy  
>So let me be the one you come running to, running to, r-r-running<br>I said it's just matter of fact, boy  
>You just call my name<br>I'll be coming through, coming through, I'll get coming_

Glimmer and Demeter smile as I sing. Clove and Haley look at me surprised along with Cato, Gale, and Peeta. I don't mind it, so I keep singing, trying to block out the world. It helps and I keep singing, and this time confidently.

_On the other side of the world, it don't matter  
>I'll be there in two, I'll be there in two, I'll be there in two<br>I still feel it every time  
>It's just something that you do<br>Now ask me why I want to_

Everyone starts to sing the lyrics. Clove and Haley are waving their arms in the air as high as the car will let them. It makes me laugh at one point because they look funny. Glimmer and Demeter continue to sing in shouting instead of singing. The boys actually start to sing. Peeta's close enough for me to hear him, and he sounds amazing. His voice is as smooth and light as leather.

_It's everything about you, you, you  
>Everything that you do, do, do<br>From the way that we touch, baby  
>To the way that you kiss on me<br>It's everything about you, you, you  
>The way you make it feel, new, new, new<br>Like every party is just us two  
>And there's nothing I could point to<br>It's everything about you, you, you  
>Everything about you, you, you<br>It's everything that you do, do, do  
>It's everything about you<em>

We laugh as Glimmer sings this part on her own. Her voice is outstanding and I can tell that Gale is just staring at her. I nudge Peeta and turn my head towards Gale. He looks at Gale and smirks. I whisper a plan I have for glimmer and Gale. He nods and smiles. Glimmer is still singing and it only makes Gale's face run red a lot faster.

_Yes, I like the way you smile with your eyes  
>Other girls see you but don't realize that it's m-my loving<br>There's something about your laugh that it makes me wanna have to  
>There's nothing funny so we laugh at n-n-nothing<em>

Demeter joins in and Glimmer lets her sing it on her own. Cato is trying not to look at her because he's the one driving, but he looks at her from the corner of his eyes.

_Every minute's like our last so let's just take it real slow  
>Forget about the clock that's tick-tick-ticking<em>

I sing another part on my own and I feel Peeta's eyes on me. I ignore it, as I reach the notes of every word.

_I still feel it every time  
>It's just something that you do<br>Now ask me why I want to_

We all sing and the wind blows some of my hair. I feel Peeta's hands around my waist as we all sing. This moment can't get any better.

_It's everything about you, you, you  
>Everything that you do, do, do<br>From the way that we touch, baby  
>To the way that you kiss on me<br>It's everything about you, you, you  
>The way you make it feel, new, new, new<br>Like every party is just us two  
>And there's nothing I could point to<br>It's everything about you, you, you  
>Everything about you, you, you<br>It's everything that you do, do, do  
>It's everything about you<em>

I'm surprised that Peeta sings this on his own. I blush furiously as he sings. His voice is soft and it makes everything better. I almost forget about the world.

_And you have always been the only one I wanted  
>And I wanted you to know without you I can't face it<br>All we wanna have is fun  
>But they say that we're too young<br>Let them say what they want _

We all sing as the car pulls up to the parking lot of the beach. I look through the window to see absolutely no one. I like it this way, and I smile.

_It's everything about you, you, you  
>Everything that you do, do, do<br>From the way that we touch, baby  
>To the way that you kiss on me<br>It's everything about you, you, you  
>It's everything that you do, do, do<br>Like every party is just us two  
>And there's nothing I could point to<em>

_It's everything about you, you, you  
>Everything about you, you, you<br>It's everything that you do, do, do  
>It's everything about you<em>

Peeta kisses me on the lips and it makes my heart skip a beat. This song is right.

Everything about Peeta. Everything about you.

**Hope you guys liked. Next Chapter is on the beach! :P It took me 2 hours to write this, so you can say I was rushing big time on it. :D Next chapter…I don't know when I can update but if my computer fixes, then I would update as quick as possible.**


	11. The Beach

**Ha-ha! In the 80's. So happy right now! *Dances like an idiot*. Anyways, thanks for everyone who reviews and reads. I'm glad you guys like it =) **

**The Beach**

**Peeta's POV:**

We get out of the car with everyone going crazy. Glimmer sings loudly, Cato runs to the sand yelling out I don't know what, and Clove dancing with her friend Haley. Gale runs to the sand and tackles Cato to the ground. I laugh and grab Katniss' hand. Demeter starts to dance along with Clove and Haley. Katniss and I are the only ones not freaking out. Instead, we walk down to the sand and set up. The sunlight is warm on my skin. I swear the beach never looked more beautiful. The water is bluer than the sky itself. I breathe in the air of the ocean. This type of air lets me escape. I wish every day I could breathe in this fresh air and get away from all my problems. Many problems, but Katniss isn't one of them.

We lay there, in silence. Katniss' eyes shine brightly in the sun. Her skin glows beautifully in the sunlight. Her hair glistens so brightly, I think I might go blind. With one arm around her, I pull her closer. I look at her just quick enough to see the light shade of pink she occasionally turns. I smile to myself. She turns to look up at my face, I lean in and before I can even kiss her, Cato and Gale squirt us with water guns. Katniss laughs along with me.

"C'mon, Peeta!" Gale shouts, "We need you on our side of this war. The girls looked a little pissed off." I turn my head to look at the girls, and they look heated. Their hair is soaked. I turn back to them and run as they hand me a water gun. Katniss gasps and then smirks.

"Oh, I see how it is," she says. "We came prepared."

I look at her in confusion as she runs to the girls. Katniss takes off her t-shirt to reveal a bikini top. I'm staring at her as Gale and Cato laugh their asses off. Katniss talks to them as the other girls take off their sunglasses and then I see the bucket. Clove is the first one to pick up a water balloon. And I hope that's what it's filled with. And only that. Glimmer picks one up and soon we're being pounded on by water balloons. The water is cold and just perfect because the heat from the sun is starting to bother me. I take my shirt off and I see the glances Katniss gives me, which only makes me smile wider. I've never smiled so much in my entire life. But of course Katniss is the only girl who has ever made me smile so much. She's the only girl.

Gale and I shoot them with water as Cato picks up Demeter and throws her in the water from the ocean along with himself. I laugh to myself as I feel a water balloon crash onto my face. I look in the direction it was thrown to see Katniss. I raise an eyebrow and I run for her as she screams and starts to run. I smile as I catch her and carry her over my shoulder. Her laugh makes something flutter in my stomach. I run to the water with her still over my shoulder. The water is refreshing and cool. Glimmer and Demeter soon join us in the water, splashing each other with ocean water. Katniss pushes me by the chest. "What was that for?" I ask her, still laughing.

She rolls her eyes and replies, "You know why," she wraps her arms around my neck, planting a quick kiss. I playfully pout and she smiles, planting another kiss. This one is longer and despite the hot sun, it sends a different kind of warmth over me. Every kiss, it's as if I never kissed her before. It feels new all the time. She pulls away and our foreheads are against each others. My eyes are still closed, and that's when I feel the water suppress the heat in my cheeks that have been hot since she pulled away from the kiss. It takes me about three seconds to realize Katniss splashed me with water right in the face. I hear her laugh as I stand there, in the shallow water, smiling because her laugh always makes me nervous in a way I can't explain. I hear music from my left and I know it has to be Clove and Haley with their "One Direction." But this time they play a song that I don't bother to listen to because I'm too busy trying to catch Katniss in the water. When I do catch her, she says, "Please don't splash me with water," she tries to keep her facial expression filled with sadness, but I can see the smile trying so hard to form in the corners of her mouth.

I wasn't going to splash her anyway. I smile and pull her close to me, "I wouldn't do that," she smiles and then I add, "I'll just try to get you back in a different way."

She smirks, "Is that a challenge?"

"Something like that," I reply.

She smiles and I peck her lips before he head back to the sand, where everyone else is already sitting on their blankets, watching us and eating watermelons. We walk to them, hand-in-hand. We sit on the blankets and I grab a watermelon for Katniss and myself.

**Katniss' POV:**

I'm sitting on a blanket between Peeta's legs, leaning on his chest. Glimmer sits next to Gale, who occasionally glances at Glimmer. Demeter and Cato are talking about a boxing match. I remember that Demeter has always been fond of boxing and she always wanted to try it, but her parents were always refusing to let her try it because they think it'd get Demeter in more trouble, knowing how to fight like that. But I don't see the difference. Demeter is a great fighter, because I've seen her in many fights before we became friends. Haley and Clove sit on a blanket next to me, Haley's on her phone, playing something that sounds like Temple Run, while Clove plays a racing game on her phone. I remember what I said to Peeta about Gale and Glimmer. We whisper about it as Clove says, "Hey Katniss, did you hear about Prom yet?" She talks while she plays on her phone.

I shake my head, "No."

She grins and glances at Peeta. I turn my head to look at Peeta. Peeta gives Clove a look that I don't quite get. I can hear Gale chuckle quietly. Despite how much I want to know what's going on, I ignore it. Glimmer turns on her stereo up a little, just loud enough for us to hear it. I hum to the song and close my eyes. The fresh air and the wind that softly blows during the sun setting relaxes me. I feel Peeta play with my hair. Later on, we have a competition on who can pass the next level in Angry Birds.

"I can so beat you at this," Haley says to Gale.

"Yeah right, watch," Gale replies.

We play for a while and then we switch to Temple Run. I beat everyone and I'm sure that Peeta let me win. We stay like this until it starts to get dark outside.

The drive home is quiet and barely anyone decides to talk. We all look lost in thought. I look out the window and suddenly I feel terrible. I'm remembering what that witch told me. But I know Peeta can fend for himself, and he's strong. It's just that I don't know what Amber and that witch have planned. It could be very bad. They drop off Glimmer and Demeter first, then Haley, and then Clove and me. I kiss Peeta before I get off the car. I smile as he whispers, "I love you." With no hesitation, I say it back. When Clove and I enter the house, I know my nightmare begins. My heart beats faster and my smile fades away quicker than the speed of light itself. I stop dead in my tracks with Clove. Her eyes widen and I see Silvia's sad face and a face I didn't want to see ever again. My father's.

"Hey dad," I laugh a bit nervously, "what are you doing here?"

"Where were you, Katniss and Clove?" He asks, firmly, and demanding. He completely ignores my question.

"We were at the beach," I say, honestly.

"With who," he asks, suspiciously as he moves to forward.

"We were with Glimmer and Demeter who came to visit for Spring Break," Clove answers, her voice sounding smooth and without cracking. This is why sometimes I'm glad she can lie very good, even though it isn't really "lying".

"With who else?"

"Nobody," I reply quickly, looking right into his eyes.

"Katniss, don't lie to me. I know Peeta and his friends were there. Marisol, Peeta's sister-in-law, told me everything you and your friends did. I'm done with this, really, Katniss. I'm done," he says, walking over to the couch. "There's no use, Katniss. Everything I try to do to keep you away from that boy, it's futile."

I sigh and sit next to him on the couch as Clove and Silvia leave the room. "Father, why can't you let me see him? It's not a big deal. Don't you want me to be happy? Let it go."

He looks up at me, and I think he slightly smiles. "Katniss, I've realized that he makes you happy. And if this helps, I went to see his father, and he actually apologized when I did. We agreed to let you see each other. I'm sorry, sweetheart. I don't want you to see me as the bad guy, I was just being over dramatic," I smile widely and he suddenly laughs. "Just listen to me, I sound like your mother."

I laugh along with him and I hug him tightly. I can't believe he did that for me. I know he did that because he thought he knows what is best for me. But I'm happy that he finally realizes that Peeta makes me happy, and that he's okay with it. Then, I hear someone's voice that I've been dying to hear. Prim's voice.

"Hi, Katniss," she says, smiling widely.

I quickly turn around to see her. I get off the couch and literally squish her to death because I hug her so tight. I smile and say, "What are you doing here?"

"Dad said I can stay over for three days since I have a break from school," she replies, still smiling. Her blue eyes shine brightly and her soft blond hair in curls, bouncing.

I turn to look at my father. He smiles and I smile back. This feeling I have in my is indescribable. What has gotten into my father? I'm just so happy right now, and I don't think I've ever felt so happy except for when Peeta's near me.

. . .

I wake up to the sound of loud laughing coming from downstairs. I smile because I realize it's Prim's laughter. I get off the bed and walk downstairs. I look around the living room to see no one. I enter the kitchen to an enormous mess. There's flour everywhere. Prim, Clove, and Silvia are covered in it. Clove throws flour at Prim while Silvia laughs and looks up at me. She smiles and says, "Come on, Katniss. Join us."

I smile and race to grab flour and I throw at Clove's face. We all laugh and in minutes we are all covered in flour and the mess has become larger. I laugh as my father comes into the kitchen. He has an unhappy look on his face as he looks up at me. Apprehension settles in my chest as I ask, "Father, what is it?"

He sighs and says, "Peeta's in the hospital. He's extremely ill from some type of flower poisoning. It's really bad, Katniss. Doctors say the next position he might be in is a coma."

My eyes widen and tears stream out of my eyes like a waterfall. I can't believe this. Only one person could have done this. Marisol. She wasn't kidding. And my heart breaks into a million pieces at just the thought of Peeta being in the hospital never to wake up again.

**HOPE YOU GUYS LIKED! CLIFFHANGER! I'm sorry, I have this phobia called ''. And it scares me more than it probably scares you. Lol, anyways….REVIEW!**


	12. Desperate

**HI! Okay, I swear, if we reach 100 in reviews, I'd post two chapters in a day! 2 more chapters if we reach 110! Ahhh, I'm so thankful to everyone who reads this story and who reads my other stories too! THANKS.**

**Desperate **

**Katniss' POV:**

What am I still doing here? Father asks me if I want to go to the hospital, and without hesitation, I reply with an urgent yes. Prim and Clove follow me out the door. My head spins with thoughts. Is he okay? Questions ran through my head as father drove us to the Hospital. The only woman who could have done this is Marisol. I'm sure of that. Fear increases as we get closer to the hospital. What else will she do? Will Peeta be okay? What flower poisoning was it? The drive to the hospital isn't very long, but it feels like hours. Tears threaten to escape my eyes, but I wipe the away. We get there, and I literally jump out of the car.

Clove, Prim, and I all follow father to the front desk of the hospital and we follow a woman who shows us to his room. My heart beats very fast and I feel someone grab my hand. I turn my head to see that Prim was the one who grabbed my hand. She gives me a reassuring smile. I force a small smile in return. We rush down the hallways until we come to a room. Inside, are Gale, Cato, and Peeta's father. On the bed, lies a blond, blue-eyed, and strong guy who I've fallen in love with. The sight of Peeta's father makes me a little nervous to move closer to his son. Near Peeta, stands his brother. He moves up from his chair that is next to Peeta's bed. The lights of the room seem to bother me. Maybe it is that I'm going crazy, or that the lights really just bother me. But, it feels as if this is all a dream…no, it's a nightmare. His eyes are closed, and the beeping of the machines give my heart a jump every second I hear the beeping. There are red patches on his arms, as if the poison of which ever flower was that did this to him is as deadly as the feelings I'm feeling right now.

I move closer to him, every second I do, my mind gets closer to the edge of depleting. Something's eating at the back of my head, and it may be the fact that he might never wake up again. I don't know what might happen if I wouldn't see those blue orbs of his. I tell myself to stop distressing. He's strong, he can make it through anything, but it's almost as if trying to believe in that matter is ineffective. I sit on the chair next to his bed, and I grab his hand. There's no spark or electric movement in my body when I feel his hand on mine. It makes it harder to believe he'd wake it. As odd as it is to not feel that spark of energy I always feel when we touch, I hold his hand tighter as if trying to get him to wake up. Though he doesn't. Prim keeps her eyes on Peeta along with Clove. Gale and Cato are serious, which I've never seen them in such earnestness before. Their jocular faces are replaced my solemn expressions. Peeta's father seems regretful. Does he now realize how bad of a decision it was to send Peeta to California? And it's even worse to make him move in with his idiotic brother and his disgraceful, gold-digging wife. Father looks at me carefully, as if analyzing what my reaction is. Before anyone can react or speak, a man that I assume is a doctor comes in. He looks around with his dark brown eyes. His thick eyebrows create furrows as he looks down at the clipboard in his hands. "How is he," asks the deep voice that belongs to Peeta's father.

"He's doing fine, but not too good. The flower, the Oleander, mixed with tea can be very dangerous. Did anyone else drink this?" The doctor looks around the room.

"No, my wife made some, but I don't think she drank any," Peeta's brother replies.

How thoughtful of Marisol. Anger erupts in me like a volcano erupting, letting magma soar through the air and cover the land beyond it. Where is she anyway? If she was here, she would have been laying on a hospital in worst conditions than Peeta. The doctor takes another look over his clipboard and says, "Well, just be careful."

And with that, the doctor leaves without another word. I look down at Peeta, and I hope that with the touch of my hand he'd know how desperate I am to see his blue eyes, to know that he's in good health, and that he'd be all right. The air is getting thinner every moment I see his chest rice and fall. I hope it preserves doing that. I can clearly feel the distress in me. And I can tell others see it evidently. Hours go by that I don't even blink, just looking at his chest rise and fall, hearing his breathing, and watching the monitor on the machines. Peeta's brother leaves when the clock hits eight in the night. Gale and Cato leave with Peeta's father. It's only Prim, Clove, and my father left. Father says he'll take Prim and Clove home. In minutes, I'm left alone with Peeta. His eyes remain closed. Seconds past and I feel my eyes get watery. Immediately, the tears rush down my cheeks like waterfalls. I don't even try to wipe them away, I just let them roll down my face, because in reality, the pain in my heart already shows, and it makes no difference in crying.

The room is silent. The beeping of the machines is the only thing I hear along with his breathing. _Wake up, please. _Those are the only words in my head. It's as if the variety of words are wiped clean off my mind in the moment. Those are the only words that I can process through my head and make their way to my lips. I stare at his face. It's calm and expressionless. But I'm not. My eyes harden as another hour goes by. That's when I finally break down. My eyes are red and puffy. I feel the dried tears be replaced by the new ones rolling down my cheeks once again. A horrible sound between a cry and chocking leaves my lips. "Please, please wake up," I whisper, crying as if I were a baby.

Nothing. Nothing that indicates that he'd wake up happens. I hear the door creak open and I wipe my tears away. I find the last person I wanted to see. Amber. I immediately stand up and glare at her. She looks at me, with fear and regret in her eyes. She looks from me to Peeta, and I see a tear quickly roll down her cheek.

"What are you doing here?" I ask, rudely and spiteful.

She walks closer to the bed where Peeta is, but I move closer to her, making her take a step back. "I came to see Peeta."

I study her face, reading her expression. "Why? So you can poison him even more," I spit.

She shakes her head. "Marisol went too far. I didn't want this to happen," she moves closer, but I move even closer to where she stands.

"Then what was it that you wanted to happen? Huh? What's going through your head, Amber?" I scream at her. Her eyes widen, she's taken aback by my loudness. "Look what you did? What's wrong with you?" She looks down and another tear rolls down her cheek. "You don't know how much pain I feel. Do me a favor…LEAVE."

She stands up, regaining all her courage to scream, "Marisol did this, I didn't! I told her that she should just give up! I knew it was hopeless and stupid to try and separate you from Peeta! Do you know what it's like…to love someone with all your heart…to know that there's another girl he loves? And it's not you." My anger dies down a little. Her tears run more frequently now. Her voice quiets down to a normal volume. "That he loves someone else and despises you deeply because you _try _to be friends with him? I know that I've gotten you in trouble and you really hate me now. I know that you feel like hell and you want to rip my head off. But I just need for you to listen to me. I didn't want this to happen. In fact, I didn't want anything to happen. I was going to apologize to you, but then Marisol threatened me. I had to stay quiet. You have no idea what that woman is capable of. She'd even kill Peeta's brother for his money."

I look at her carefully. She has loved Peeta all this time? I couldn't imagine to have Peeta love another girl and to know that it's not me. I still don't feel bad for her. But something in me tells me to let it go. "Why should I believe you?"

"Because, if you love Peeta with all your heart, and you were in my place, would you believe me now? As desperate as you are desperate for Peeta to wake up, that's how desperate I am for someone to believe me. I had to go to you because I know how much you love him, and believe it or not, that's how much I love Peeta," she replies.

There is honesty and hope in her eyes. I can see that she's desperate along with that she hasn't slept for days. It makes me wonder if she is really as cruel and brainless as she seems. Her words are stuck in my head. There is so much anguish in her eyes that it doesn't pain me to say, "Okay."

She smiles. "Thank you."

I sigh. Sitting back down, Amber gives one long look at Peeta, and then she leaves. I sit back down next to Peeta. My anger dies down and I feel desperate once more. My heart beats fast with hurt. The door creaks open to reveal a nurse. She sadly smiles at me and tells me that she's just going to give Peeta medicine. The needle that she pushes through Peeta's skin is long and it makes my stomach churn. I've realized that needle are not my favorite. She leaves and soon my fear of long needles dies out, and it's replaced by something much worse. Desperation. My tears don't hesitate to escape my eyes. Right now, I feel like the most fragile thing in the world. Without Peeta, I realize, I'm nothing. Anything, at this point, can make me tear up. I haven't ever felt this much misery ever in my life. I want it to leave, as much as I want Peeta to wake up. I feel breakable. More breakable than a delicate flower.

I start to doze off after minutes of crying my eyes out. When I hear someone call my name, my eyes jolt open. I look down at Peeta to see his eyes are closed. The person who called my name was my father. He looks at me, concern in his eyes. "Katniss, you need sleep."

"I'm not leaving," I persist, looking down at Peeta and grabbing his hand.

He mumble, "I know." He hands me something. "I brought you a blanket and a pillow."

"Thanks," I mutter.

"Well sweetie, I'm heading home. If you need anything, just call, okay?"

I nod, "Okay."

I cover myself in the blanket and lean pack on the soft pillow that I have fixed against the chair. I look at Peeta the entire time. My head starts to hurt from all the crying. My eyes are hard and my nose is stuffy. I wait there, with hope that Peeta will wake up. I take a hold of his hand. And then, my eyes give up. The last thing on my mind was, _Wake up, Peeta. Please._

Out of nowhere, I feel my hand tighten. My eyes jolt back open and I look down at my hand, the hand that was holding Peeta's. I hear a groan and I can't believe that it's coming from Peeta. I stand up rapidly. His eyes open suddenly, to reveal the blue, the beautiful ocean blue orbs of his.

"Katniss," he croaks.

It takes me seconds to realize that he has spoken. He's awake. The love of my life is awake.

**I HOPE YOU GUYS LIKED. AND YOU KNOW WHAT, I'M KEEPING THAT PROMISE ABOUT POSTING MORE CHAPTERS IF I GET 100-110 REVIEWS! LOVE YOU GUYS ^_^**


	13. Fighting

**ME: Hey guys, did you hear that?**

**YOU GUYS: No? O.o**

**ME: That was the sound of my mind exploding! You guys are amazing! So, this is for you guys. Be on the lookout for the next chapter. AND YOU GUYS GAVE ME LIKE 6 REVIEWS IN MINUTES! Oh my gosh, is it wrong to be in love with you guys? Lol, anyways, THANKS. I cannot what my eyes are seeing. You guys are incredible. **

**Fighting**

It feels as if I were running for hours, and it's now that I'm taking a break. My heart is like a drum, a drum with an irregular rhythm. My eyes are wide, with both happiness and amazement. His blue eyes stare back at me, shining brightly as he makes an adorable face. His smile makes my heart beat faster as if I've never seen it already. My eyes fill up with tears of joy as I laugh. I cup his face with my hands and I do something I've been dying to do every since he left my sight. I crash my lips on to his. I feel that electric movement through my body that I wasn't feeling before. My eyes are closed, my forehead is against his, and I haven't noticed that my tears are running out of my eyes rapidly. Nothing, nothing in the world matters right now, except for this moment. The distress and despair is a weight that has been lifted off me right when my lips met his, right when I saw those gorgeous eyes of his. I open my eyes and meet his. He wipes my tears away with his thumb, caressing my face. In those ocean blue eyes, I see something that takes me by surprise. It's more of a feeling, a feeling that hits me like a rain of bricks. It's the feeling that tells me I want to live the rest of my life next this guy. Next to Peeta. I remember promising myself I'd never feel this way, that I'd never even fall in love to be more specific. But those promises were shattered when I saw him. I knew, right when I first looked into his eyes, that promise is nothing anymore. That promise is like a piece of bedraggled paper blowing in the street of New York City as people walk pass it, not even caring enough about it to glance at it.

"Peeta," I say, trying to get myself to stop crying like an idiot. "You're awake."

He weakly smiles and replies, "I know, and I've never been happier to be awake."

I smile and press my lips against his again. Right at that moment, someone comes in. I pull away to see Peeta's father. My cheeks heat up faster than boiling water from the embarrassment. Peeta's father is almost Peeta's twin. He has blond hair, but his is much darker. His blue eyes are not that new blue like Peeta's, his father's are much older, and they seem to show his experience. Mr. Mellark, which I decided to call him by that now, doesn't seem cruel, he seems jovial and kind. That all came together like a cryptic puzzle when he smiled. That made me blush even harder. I look at my feet as he asks, "May I speak to my son?"

I slightly smile and nod, leaving the room. I can't help but think about what he'd say to Peeta. Is it about us? Or is it nothing about us? Either way, it's none of my business. I sit outside in the waiting area for Mr. Mellark to come out of the room. Happiness runs throughout my body through my veins. Seeing his blue eyes again made something inside of me glow like a very bright light, like the sun. And like the stars that shine from above. Just listen to me, I sound like a lovesick girl. Suddenly, something else pops into my head. Yesterday, at the beach, Clove gave Peeta weird looks when she asked me about Prom. It isn't hard to see that Peeta probably was going to ask me to go with him. They made it so obvious that it's most likely laughable. Anyways, my heart is finally settled. I'm not in the misery I was before, and it makes me feel fantastic and filled with relief.

_**A Few Days Later…**_

Peeta was let out of the hospital a day ago. The first thing we did, oddly, was go out and eat ice cream. He laughed at my sudden need to eat ice cream. Defensively, I said, "Hey, I need ice cream like Glimmer needs 'someone' with her." Glimmer and Gale were with us that day, and it made Glimmer sink in her seat, with Gale looking between us suspiciously. Peeta has been very quiet lately, and Clove and him have been having quiet conversation. At one point, I tried my very best not to laugh with Demeter when we were walking home. Clove just started talking and talking about Prom. That conversation quickly when south when she ask Demeter if anyone has asked her yet. It had upset Demeter that Cato hasn't asked her yet. But, I'm not so sure he is. We both know how Cato is with dances and anything that has to do with fancy clothing and "crap", he says. He hates them. I don't understand partially, because I don't like them too much as well. But there's a big difference, I don't despise them like Cato. I told Demeter to wait for him, he probably is, it's just that he needs time. It almost made me laugh when I realized how different Gale and Cato make Glimmer and Demeter behave. They seem so desperate to go to Prom with them. I didn't tell her _that _because I know it would offend her. I know how they are, and when you offend them, it takes _days _for them to accept your apology. But, since they like messing with me and embarrassing me, it only takes minutes for them to accept it because they have a lot more apologies to give _me. _

Prim left California with my father a day ago. On her last day, I took her to a water park. I decided that I should spend time with her like I planned since Peeta was better. Prim was more elated than I have ever seen her before. But, it brought a smile to my face because being able to spend time with my sister and see her so happy is something I haven't seen in a while. And of course, that's my fault for getting into so much trouble. I will miss her, but she'll come back for summer. Right now, I have something else to worry about…Prom.

"Clove, get down here right now, or I'm leaving your butt here!" I yell.

Prom was never my favorite, and I've dreaded it for quite some time. As I sit here, waiting for Clove to get ready to head to school, I think about everything my mother has told me about Prom. They weren't awful things, it was the dresses, the makeup, and the hair that most likely made me want to puke. Mother told me, most girls freak out and go overboard with these types of things. I'd ignore the parts when she'd say that _how _the guy would ask you was the big deal. It had to be romantic. All I thought at that moment was, _Romantic my ass. _Why is it such a big deal? That's one thing I'll never understand about the society we girls live in today.

Clove dashes downstairs with her book bag and out the door, not even looking at me, which I'm sitting right in front of her. I stand up and start laughing. She thinks I actually left her. When I hear the door smash open again, I know she's mad. "You made me rush downstairs and there's still thirty minutes until school!" She yells at me.

I try my best to stop laughing. "Sorry, but I needed to get there early," I say, as we walk out the door, closing it behind us.

"Why? So you can kissy-kiss your boyfriend?" She teases, laughing at the same time.

"Tease me all you want, but you don't have one," I instantly regret that.

She looks at me for a second, shocked that I'd say something like that, knowing that she's practically in love with some guy. "I cannot believe you just said that to me," she says, running ahead of me.

"Clove, wait, I'm sorry!" I yell as I run after her. "I didn't mean to say it."

"Well, it is true isn't it!" She runs faster, leaving me incredibly behind.

I sigh, why am I such an idiot? I walk the rest of the way, angry at myself. I kick pebbles on the sidewalk for about ten minutes when I get there. In front of the school, there's a pack of students forming a circle around what looks like two guys fighting. When I see the blond hair, my eyes widen. They're on the floor, practically killing each other. There's blood trickling down his face, while he punches the other guy to death. My heart beats faster, faster than a bullet train can run. My eyes are filed with horror. I see Amber look at me with the same look on her face, horror. I see Gale and Cato run into the mess of students and pull Peeta off the guys that looks as if his entire face was covered in blood. Once they get him off the guy, Peeta looks at me with anger in his eyes. "Don't ever talk to me."

**OH MY GOODNESS! WHAT IS UP WITH HIM? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA**


	14. Trouble & Missing

**Here's the next chapter! I'm posting one more after this. So, if I die because my fingers hurt, wish me luck in the afterlife. :) But, DON'T HATE ME. They're not going to be fighting for a while.**

**Trouble & Missing**

The groups of kids vanish after the boy with blood all over his face is taken to the nurse. I look at him with horror. Some teachers tell Peeta to wait outside, he's in big trouble. I can't believe that Peeta's so angry, and he's furious at me. The hurt is somewhat as painful as dozens of bricks raining on me. I've been standing here with tears in my eyes for about five minutes. He's sitting on the steps of the school, looking at the floor. I stare at him, not understanding why exactly he is angry at me. He looks up at me, anger still in his eyes. His blue eyes are filled with fury, while mine are teary and confused. "Why," is all I manage to say. Words can't find a way around the hurt in my heart. When his eyes shoot me a look of anger, I think I might just fall apart.

"Why, is what I'm asking. Why did you do this to me?" He snaps.

"Do what?" I snap right back. I'm starting to get irritated. My sadness is replaced by anger. I can just tell that in seconds we will be yelling and screaming at each other.

His eyes are furious as he stands up, dried blood on the corner of his mouth. "You cheated on me," he says, between clenched teeth.

My eyes widen. The shock, I'm sure, is visible through my eyes. "What?" The shock I'm feeling is not only because of what a big fat lie that is, but because he'd actually believe I'd do that to him. "What are you talking about? I'd never cheat on you."

He was going to say something, when Amber came in. "She's not lying, Peeta. I overheard those boys, they were messing with you." Something familiar in her eyes shines. She glances at me as if to tell me we need to speak. I look away to face Peeta, who now looks at me carefully, reading my expression.

My cheeks heat up awfully fast, letting him know how furious I am. "I can't believe you'd believe that!" I scream at him. "Do you really think I'm like that?" I start to walk away, when he grabs me by the arm. I turn my head around in half a second. "Don't," is all I say to him, before rushing into the school with angry tears rushing down my cheeks.

I run past classrooms that are filled with students already in class. I make my way to the bathroom and shut the door quickly. I lean against the wall and sink down. I hear the door open, Amber. _Why am I crying? _There's anger rushing through my veins and all throughout my body. The tears have no meaning, just the anger. My mind still can't process the fact that Peeta would believe such a stupid lie. Who are those boys anyway?

"Katniss," Amber starts. I look up at her and wipe my tears. "Marisol did this, and I bet you already know that."

_No, I didn't know that. _This makes me stand up as if anger is the energy and gives me the courage for me to stop crying and get to my feet. This is one of the reasons why I promised myself I'd never fall in love. Because love hurts. I rush pass Amber and rush out the door to be greeted by Peeta again. "Katniss," he starts.

I sigh as I feel him grip my arms. "What? Are you going to accuse me again?" I snap at him.

"Look, I'm sorry," he says, regret in his eyes. "I know it was stupid to believe that."

I raise an eyebrow. "So when I explained to you that I didn't cheat on you, you were still angry. But when Amber explained, you believed her?"

He smiles, in amusement as he pulls me close to him. His blue eyes mesmerize me when I look into them. "Why do you have to make everything so hard?"

My anger starts to go south. I let out the breath I didn't know I was holding. I give him a small smile and say, "I have to get to class and you need to go the Principal's office." I look behind him to see the principal walking towards us. His face red with fury and his hands in fists as he walks quickly.

He turns his head and then looks back at me, with a mischievous smile. I smile and start to walk to class, but he pulls me back, "What? No kiss?"

I smile and press my lips against his, for about a minute until I hear the principal's footsteps get closer. I pull away and whisper, "Good luck," into his ear. Trouble doesn't sound so good to me. And seeing that he's about to get into a lot of trouble makes my stomach churn with a bit of fear. What will his father do? I push the thought aside as I walk towards class.

"Ms. Everdeen, you're late!" My teacher, math teacher, screams.

"Yeah, I know, detention," I reply, boringly. I sit on my desk near the windows and I don't pay attention to anything.

. . .

Turns out Peeta was just suspended for about three days. His father isn't too upset because Peeta told him why he had to fight. It's late, very late. It's a full moon tonight, but it seems like every other moon tonight to me. I'm walking by myself home, and Clove is still upset with me. I shouldn't have ever said that to her. But of course, I'm an idiot. I can't believe myself. Demeter and Glimmer leave today. And I don't want them to, but I can't change anything. I walk down the street, kicking pebbles constantly. I hear a screeching noise, as if a car was right behind me. I turn around to see the light of headlights right in my face. Four, strong-looking, and covered in black, come out of the car and grab me by the arms. I feel one of them put a piece of cloth on my face, near my nose. I try to scream, but my screams are muffled. My vision starts to blur, along with the vile smell that is now suffocating me. I feel them carry me to the car. My bones lose their strength and I feel as fragile as I did back in that hospital when Peeta was unconscious. The last thing I feel are the tears rushing down my cheeks because this is another terrible thing happening.

**Clove's POV:**

Mother is going crazy. It's midnight and Katniss still isn't here. Fear starts to crawl up my body. She might have been with Peeta. But, we called him, and he's home, probably as scared as I am right now. I know Katniss, and she wouldn't have missed Demeter and Glimmer leaving. We've contacted almost everyone and the police. They all have not seen her anywhere. Where could she be? My mind is locked in thoughts. Fear and anxiety seems to take me over. I wanted to apologize for over reacting about what she said. I know she didn't mean it. But right now, fear is all I can manage, and even that seems difficult.

I hear the doorbell ring. Mother rushes to it and Peeta and his father come pouring in the house, Katniss' father right behind them. I hear the frantic conversation and I can't manage to hear it anymore. I cover my ears and lay my head on the counter. This feels as if it is my entire fault. Maybe I shouldn't have yelled at her. Guilt is another thing that piles on top of me, along with all the scared emotions. Where could she be? The door creaks open to reveal Marisol. What is she doing here? I ignore her. Amber is behind her, glaring at the back of Marisol's blond head. She looks angry, and when her eyes spot me, she mouths, _We need to talk. _

**Okay, don't get mad at me. I know, I know. One bad thing after another. But, trust me, it's good. **


	15. Painful

**Okay, here's the last chapter for today. I hope that you guys like it. And don't worry; all of this "bad stuff" will go away. We just need to see some more…misery. LOL, Sorry, I can't find the right word. Anyways, don't stop reading. Something will happen in this chapter that I'm sure you guys will hate, but don't worry, it doesn't sound as bad as it does. AND it won't last very long.**

**Painful**

**Katniss' POV:**

The fear grows immediately when they take the blind fold off me. I cry out and then I feel the hard blow on my knee. This hurts me so bad that I cry out even more, blood streaming out of my mouth. I've been here for hours, feeling more and more hurt every time they send a blow anywhere in my body. All I can think about is the pain that runs throughout my body. I beg them to stop, but they don't. Every hour, my body starts to give up. My eyes are giving up as well. When I hear one of them say something. I try to listen, but the throbbing of my body has reached my ears.

"You will do what we tell you, alright?" One of them asks, with a deep and cruel laugh right behind it.

I look around, all I see is darkness. I nod my head, urgently.

"You'll break up with that little boyfriend of yours, and our boss won't hurt you. But, if you don't, we will kill him and you," he looks at his friends, "and possibly burry you two together," he laughs evilly along with his friends. Immediately the name of this person, who I assume is their boss, pops into my head. Marisol. "And don't tell anyone we made you do it. Come up with something." He then gets very close to me, his face covered in a black mask, and his hand touching my thigh, "Or maybe she'll let us have a little fun with you." His laugh rumbles in my ears, along with the loud and cruel laughter of the others.

It makes me shudder in disgust. _That will never happen, _I keep telling myself. My heart feels as if it breaks. And this time, I think it actually does. The fact that I need to break up with Peeta and he'd probably hate me afterwards is going to damage me, very much. It's going to break me, never to be repaired again. My heart beats fast as the pain becomes even more agonizing. I feel the lift me off the cold and metal chair I was tied to, tightly. Aggressively, they pull me out a door and into a black van. In the van, they put a blind fold on me again. My tears soak it, as I quietly cry. _Why? Why does this happen to me? _Tears are not enough to express what I'm feeling. The pain, the heart-breaking pain that tears at my insides, makes me realize what love has done to me. I no longer want it. But, my heart craves Peeta's touch, his presence, and his lips. I don't know how I'm going to do it, but I need to.

My head hurts badly, my knee will not allow me to walk properly, and in my conditions, being thrown off the van and onto the street of my house isn't the best way to get out of a van. Behind me, the van isn't there anymore. It's gone. I crawl up to the door of my house, crying out in pain every time I move an inch. With my knees quivering, my bloody hands, and all the strength I have left, I get up from the ground and turn the door knob of my front door. Immediately, I hear an urgent conversation with many people talking at once die out. I quickly lose that strength when my eyes lay on Peeta for a second, and that's when I break. I fall to the floor, crying out in the pain. It's replaced by a scream that I'm sure belongs to Silvia. Another one coming from the kitchen that belongs to Clove. I feel strong arms wrap around me and carry be somewhere that looks like a couch. At the touch of his hands on my body, an electric current runs through me. Even more tears rush out because I know its Peeta. I hear voices and the more I try to stay awake, the more the voices fade.

"Get the emergency kit now we-…."

"What happened to he-…?"

The only thing I hear before I black out is Peeta's voice. And it makes my heart fill with more hurt. "Katniss, please, please stay with me. I love you…"

. . .

My eyes open slowly. I look around to see the bright rays of the sun stream in from the windows. I look around the room to realize it's _my_ room. My knee is wrapped in some type of band and the cuts on my arms are covered in bandages. There's no blood on my body like I remember. The pain is less noticeable, but it's still there. I feel strong arms wrapped around me. The warmth surrounding my body is comforting. I look at the face and I knew it would me him. Peeta has his arms wrapped around me protectively. Tears threaten to fall out of my eyes, but I wipe the away before his eyes open and he looks up at me. I can't break up with him now. I decided that when I get better, I'll do it, but I don't see how it's going to be less painful.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" He asks, stroking my hair, his blue eyes looking at me with concern.

"Better," I croak.

"You want water?" I nod my head.

He hands me a glass of water and I slowly drink it all as he strokes my hair. His gentle touch makes me tear up. He must think I'm in pain because he asks, "Am I hurting you?"

_Yes, but not in the way you think. _"No," I reply. I move closer to him, resting my head on his chest. I want to spend every moment I can with him. But then, it would just be too painful to lose him. Either way, it's going to be painful, and I can't do it. I refrain from letting my tears escape, and instead, I press my lips softly onto his, and when he pulls away, I wish he hadn't.

"Katniss, I know you, what's going on? What happened last night? I know you're hiding something from me. Please, Katniss, you can tell me anything," I know he's concerned and suspicious. Is it so easy to figure out something is wrong with me? I need to tell him. I can tell him. I need to tell him. It will give me a better chance of staying with him. I don't see how I'm going to break up with him. I need to tell him. So, I gather all my breath.

"Okay, I'll tell you."

**Clove's POV:**

"Amber, what is it that you need to tell me?" I ask her, suspiciously.

"It's about what happened to Katniss last night," she says.

There's silence between us. When Katniss came home last night, it all left us a bit…scarred. It was scary, seeing she was covered in blood, crying out in pain, and in suffering. I don't want to see it, and something in her eyes told me that it was bad what happened, considering the fact that her condition was terrible. I look carefully at Amber carefully, waiting for her to continue. When she doesn't, it gets me irritated. I spit, "Will you get to the point already?"

She sighs and explains to me EVERYTHING. My eyes widen in horror with every word she says. Marisol did all of this. She tortured Katniss because she doesn't want her with Peeta. How could I be so stupid? She was here in the middle of the night! I stand up from my seat, glaring at Amber. "You know, you don't need to be scared of that bitch! You know you could have prevented hurting Katniss and practically breaking Peeta's heart! If you love him, then tell us what that witch will be doing to them!" My cheeks heat up very fast. I scream a lot more things at her face when I hear footsteps quickly walk into the kitchen. Peeta walks in with Katniss in tears, running after him. He picks up his jacket.

"Peeta, don't do anything! Please! I'm telling you, something will happen!" Katniss begs.

"NO! I'M GOING TO KILL HER!" Peeta's voice is so loud and angry that it just makes Katniss tear up even more.

"Peeta," Katniss' voice seems hurt. Peeta turns to look at her, and his red with fury face calms down. Amber and I look at them, and they don't even notice.

Peeta sighs, "I'm sorry," he says as he puts his jacket back down. He embraces Katniss and gives her a long, adoring kiss. I glance at Amber. Her face is filled with hurt, but the guilt is more obvious. But then, I see her eyes shine with something too kind for her own personality. Her eyes shine with kindness. Maybe she's not as brainless and stupid as both Katniss and I thought. I look at her, and it doesn't sting me to realize that maybe she's not as mean as we thought. But she is as unreasonable as I thought. She needed to tell us. And right now, it doesn't seem too bad to believe her.

I clear my throat because Katniss and Peeta are still "making-out" in the kitchen. They pull away to look at us. "Now that we know all of this, what do we do?"

Katniss turns to Amber. "What is she planning?"

Amber looks at all of us. Her voice seems unsettled when she says, "Well, she's going to kill one of us. And I'm pretty sure it's me or Peeta."


	16. Staying Home & Being Lazy

**I've been working on this one for a while, so I hope you like it! ANOTHER HAPPY CHAPTER. Song "The Lazy Song"- Bruno Mars :-) But not for long….**

**Staying Home and Being Lazy**

"We're not safe anymore," I tell Peeta, as he grabs his jacket again. He's angry, I can tell by the fierceness in his eyes. It's no use in begging him to say or do anything about this. He turns on his heels and walks in the opposite direction from me. I'm suddenly angry at his stubbornness. Why can't he see that we're not out of harm's way? He's about to do something I know he'd regret. "Peeta!" I scream at him, angrily. We're outside now, with me in the doorway.

He turns around, his face red with fury. "Don't try to stop me, Katniss."

I ignore what he says so quickly that it might be faster than light. My heart beats with a lot of worry, and a fragment of anger. There's no way I'm convincing Peeta to stop what he's doing. If he tells that woman that he knows everything and he's going to throw her in jail, I fear for Peeta's life. It's just not wise. Peeta knows better, he's just over protective. But, that's not good enough for me. I need to convince Peeta to bring to an end to this stupid idea he has of marching up to his brother and dropping everything he knows like a bomb. "Peeta, listen to me, you'll only make it worse," I beg.

Amber and Clove step out of the house, looking straight at Peeta with worry. "Listen to her, Peeta. You don't know what that woman will do," Clove agrees, as anxious and worried as me.

He sighs. He looks up at me, at all of us. I can't read his facial expression. But, by the way his blue eyes slightly close, his hands refrain from becoming fists, and he runs his hands through his hair, I know that it's getting to him. He might now like it, but there's no way I'm letting him do something as irrational as going to that horrible woman and yell at her everything, when knowing that she can just kill him right there and cover it up. Who knows what that woman could do? Look what she did to me, and remembering that pain I felt, makes my knee give up. The ringing in my ears begins again. I fall to my knees in pain. Almost immediately Peeta has me in his arms, carrying me to the couch. "I'm sorry," he says, looking ashamed, "I know it's not wise to go do that."

"It's fine," I say, wincing because of my knee. Peeta kisses my cheek and strokes my hair as we sit down on the couch. Peeta decides to spend the day with me, knowing that I'd probably do nothing this weekend. I It's Friday, and I don't want to stay home, but with this knee thanks to Marisol, I'll be stuck inside this house for a while. Minutes later, we're in the kitchen, with Clove and Amber who have decided to stay with me too, Clove needs to anyway, she lives here. But, Amber…I don't know what to think of her. One day, she's getting me in the most trouble I've been in, and then the next she's warning us about something that can be very hurtful to us and revealing to me that she's in love with the same guy. How can someone like that change so quickly? Maybe those punches that I gave her really taught her a lesson…no, it's not right for me to think that way. Maybe she really does want to change. I still don't completely trust her.

We hear the door open, and everything becomes silent. We look at each other, widen eyes and preparing ourselves for anything. When we see Silvia come inside the kitchen. We let out a breath of relief, while Clove silently laughs. I turn my head to look at her, to see her bright red face, holding all the noise and laughter she's got in her system. I shake my head and raise an eyebrow. She shakes her head and her face turns brighter. She's laughing at us. Amber turns her head in Clove's direction, rolling her eyes and listening to what Silvia's saying. I haven't realized that she's asking me a question because of Clove's unreasonable laughing.

"Katniss, did you hear me? No leaving this house," she explains.

"Why?" I ask, as if it wasn't the most obvious thing that her reasons could be labeled across her forehead. We all know why, but on different bases. We don't leave this home because of Marisol. But, Silvia won't let _me _leave because of my knee or whatever other reason she has.

"Because," she starts, setting down her car keys on the counter, as she sits down on one of the stools we are sitting on, "You are hurt, and for other reasons."

This leaves me thinking. "What other reasons?"

"Reasons," she says, "and, I'm going to need to go back to work, I have a double shift today." She picks up her keys again and before she leaves, she says, "See you guys later, don't disobey me, Katniss," she looks at me.

I force a smile. "I won't."

When we hear the door close, that's when Clove bursts out laughing. We all look at her as if she was crazy. She shakes her head as her laughter stops, for now. "Look Amber, there's a spider on your shoulder. And it's big."

We all turn to look at Amber's shoulder. There's a huge spider on her shoulder. It has very long legs, skinny, and vile-looking. I don't find it quite funny until Amber starts screaming and jumping. I hear Peeta laugh continuously with Clove. I see the need to laugh as Amber finally gets the thing off her, steps on it when it gets to the floor with a lot of force, and breathes faster than a car. "Not funny," she glares at us. Her eyes go on Peeta for a slight second and her cheeks run red. Clove, seeing what just happened, laughs so hard she falls off the stool. I laugh at that, but in the inside I can't help but feel a little jealous. But why would I be jealous? Peeta loves me, not her. Why am I acting like this? I scowl at myself without anyone noticing as Peeta helps Clove back on her feet. Amber stares at Peeta when Peeta says, sarcastically, "Nice move, Clove."

"Thanks, I'm a ninja!" Clove sounded so much like a little kid that it made me laugh. I remember when we were about seven and we were watching this movie about ninjas. Clove was acting like one for years until she grew out of the interest. She looks at me and smiles, "Do you remember that?"

"Yes, how could I forget," I laugh even harder when I remember when she once broke my mother's favorite vase. "And it wasn't a smart move when you broke my mother's vase."

She laughs and says, "Yeah, I guess that's when I became a…" she gives me a goofy look along with a ridiculous smile, "…rebel."

I smile and somehow, my mind goes to Glimmer, Demeter, and Primrose. Oh how I wish they were here. This wouldn't be any better if they were. "Hey, did Glimmer and Demeter leave? I didn't get to say bye."

Clove sadly smiles and says, "Yeah, but you can always call them. They didn't look upset though, if it helps."

I smile and decide to push the thought aside. Clove says, "What do we do now?"

"How about we put another spider on Amber's shoulder," Peeta says, a bit humorous as he looks at Amber. This makes Amber's cheeks heat up. Clove glances at me with a serious expression. I shake my head slightly and turn to look at Amber. I can't help but feel _very _jealous. Anger surges through me as I realize Peeta's still looking at Amber. Then, I start to worry. I'm acting so dramatic, but it just feels as if he's starting to…._like _her. Maybe he likes her as a friend. Why am I worrying so much? But that feeling doesn't leave me. There's silence, complete silence. I keep my eyes strained on Peeta, giving him a look that he immediately understands. My anger only gets worse when he smirks. If it weren't for my knee, I would have stormed out the room.

"Okay, I got an idea we will…," Clove says as she gets off the stool she was sitting on and runs upstairs without another word. I look at Peeta and I silently laugh to myself.

"Was she supposed to finish her sentence?" I say, laughing.

He laughs and wraps his arms around my waist from behind me as I sit down. He says, "I don't know, but it looks like she was in a hurry."

Amber laughs and says, "Yeah, you're too funny," she compliments Peeta. I hope Clove gets here before I let something slip out of my mouth that will shut this bitch up…

"Thanks," Peeta replies. "It was funny when that spider gave you a heart attack," I can feel him smile. I almost growl. _Clove, get here now please. Please get here. _I'm almost as desperate as I was when Peeta was in the hospital. And he's going to end up in it along with his future bride, Amber if he doesn't stop it. He knows it bothers me. He kisses my cheek and a push him from me with my arms. Before he can say or do anything Clove comes in with a something that looks like a recipe book. _Thank God, _I think to myself.

"Bake something," she says, continuing her sentence that she left right in the middle of.

"Wow, there's no way I'm baking," Peeta persists, "that stuff is for girls."

**A/N: Lol, yeah…for girls…**

Ignoring what he said, all of us girls agree. He sighs and sits down on his own stool. "What are you guys baking anyway?"

"No, what are _we _baking," I say, looking at him evilly. He gives me a sad look and with my hand, I beckon him to move closer to me. When he does, I whisper in his ear, "Revenge."

He pouts and I smile, mischievously. "How about we bake…brownies!" Clove exclaims.

"My lord, please help me out of this," Peeta groans, looking up at the ceiling as if begging angels to help him out of this. I laugh and kiss his cheek. He makes me laugh so easily. But when Amber laughs and I see that he smiles, it breaks me.

"Okay, Amber, it's not that funny anymore," I snap at her.

She stares at my face for a minutes, and looks away, ashamed. I don't care if she's sorry, she's been doing it a while, and Peeta hasn't been helping it. Everything is in an awkward silence. I can feel Ambers shame, Clove's glances at me, and Peeta's stare. I look up at Peeta and he doesn't have an amused look on his face. He gives looks at me, but I can't read his facial expression. Instead of staring at him, I roll my eyes angrily and I look away. Clove glances at us along with Amber, a sorry look on her face now. It's not bearable now. Peeta has been getting on my nerves enough today. I don't want to hear his apologies or anything. Amber must know that it would have bothered me even when none of this happened. And that makes me doubt her even more.

Everyone is still looking at me. I feel like I'm going to yell at them to get their eyes off me, when Clove decided to break the silence and give us orders. "Okay, Amber, me and you will get the supplies, while Peeta and Katniss get the pans," she smiles, trying to lift our spirits.

She picks up a remote and puts on music. This song makes me laugh as I remember it. Peeta gives me a sorry look and I shake my head and smile. It's no use being mad at him. I'm letting it go, unless it happens again. He looks at me for a second, while I stare at him, a bit lovingly. He smiles and gets up from his stool, helps me off mine, and puts his hands on my hips. Leaning against the counter, with his body very close to mine, he whispers in my ear, "I love you."

I smile widely and reply, "I love you too."

The song hits my ears as I hear the loudness of pans hitting the floor. When I look to my left, I see that Clove and Amber opened a cabinet and let dozens of pans fall to the floor. I laugh along with Peeta. The song plays around my ears.

_Today I don't feel like doing anything  
>I just wanna lay in my bed<br>Don't feel like picking up my phone  
>So leave a message at the tone<br>'Cause today I swear I'm not doing anything._

I laugh as Peeta picks up the flour and some of it falls out of the bag, landing on Clove who is on the floor, picking up some pans. Clove yells at Peeta and smacks the flour off the top of her head. Amber laughs and picks up flour and throws it at Peeta's face. Peeta, now thinking it as a joke, throws flour at her. Clove gets up from the floor and gets some flour and throws it at Peeta too, getting revenge on him. I laugh and it seems as if every single one of my worries are gone, and that feels as if I'm flying. Peeta turns his head to look at me and raises an eyebrow. He starts to walk towards me….

_Uh!  
>I'm gonna kick my feet up<br>Then stare at the fan  
>Turn the TV on, throw my hand in my pants<br>Nobody's gonna tell me I can't_

_I'll be lounging on the couch,  
>Just chillin' in my snuggie<br>Click to MTV, so they can teach me how to dougie  
>'Cause in my castle I'm the freaking man <em>

I laugh as he pours flour on me. I stick my tongue out at him as he picks me up and sits me on the counter. I don't mind being poured flour on because I find it funny. He smiles and kisses me adoringly for a while until Clove yells, "Hey guys, will you stop making out and help us over here!"

_Oh, yes I said it  
>I said it<br>I said it 'cause I can_

_Today I don't feel like doing anything  
>I just wanna lay in my bed<br>Don't feel like picking up my phone  
>So leave a message at the tone<br>'Cause today I swear I'm not doing anything_

Clove and Amber get starting in mixing while Peeta fools around with the flour, occasionally spreading some on Clove's head to annoy her. I laugh and just for the fun of it, pick some flour myself and throw some at Peeta. He gasps playfully. "How can you betray me!" He walks around the counter to get to me, and places his hand on my thigh. I raise an eyebrow as he laughs. He pecks my lips as Clove and Amber spill some of the mixture on the floor.

_Nothing at all!  
>Ooh, hoo, ooh, hoo, ooh, ooh-ooh<br>Nothing at all  
>Ooh, hoo, ooh, hoo, ooh, ooh-ooh<em>

_Tomorrow I'll wake up, do some P90X  
>Meet a really nice girl, have some really nice sex<br>And she's gonna scream out: 'This is Great' (Oh my God, this is great)  
>Yeah<em>

Peeta moves his hand down to my butt. I punch him on the arm playfully. "Not there," I say, teasingly. Clove yells, "You guys are gross." Amber stays quiet, a little sad but trying to keep a smile on her face. I appreciate that she's not doing any flirting with him. Maybe she just wants to be his friend like she said the day back in the hospital. I smile and kiss Peeta hard and passionately as Clove smiles and rolls her eyes.

_I might mess around, get my college degree  
>I bet my old man will be so proud of me<br>But sorry pops, you'll just have to wait  
>Haha<em>

_Oh, yes I said it  
>I said it<br>I said it 'cause I can_

_Today I don't feel like doing anything  
>I just wanna lay in my bed<br>Don't feel like picking up my phone  
>So leave a message at the tone<br>'Cause today I swear I'm not doing anything_

We all laugh as Amber slips on the mixture they spilled. Amber smiles and shouts, "That's mean you guys." Clove lets her hand out to help her up. But when Amber holds it and is halfway up, she lets go. Amber falls back and laughs to herself. "Mean, Clove, very MEAN!"

_No, I ain't gonna comb my hair  
>'Cause I ain't going anywhere<br>No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no  
>I'll just strut in my birthday suit<br>And let everything hang loose  
>Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah<em>

_Ooh  
>Today I don't feel like doing anything<br>I just wanna lay in my bed  
>Don't feel like picking up my phone<br>So leave a message at the tone  
>'Cause today I swear I'm not doing anything<em>

I laugh at myself as I spill chocolate filling on myself. Some of it lands on my hands. Seeing Peeta right next to me, I put my hand on his face and spread it all over his face. I laugh as I remember that day in art class. He smiles and presses his lips against mine, kissing me slowly and softly.

_Nothing at all  
>Nothing at all<br>Nothing at all_

_**A few hours later…**_

We all sit on the couch, watching TV and eating brownies. I'm very tired, and this late is when my knee starts to bother me. I sit next to Peeta, cuddling next to him. Clove and Amber watch "Toddlers and Tiaras," as Amber suggested. Me and Clove make fun of the stuck-up toddlers. Peeta laughs along with us as Amber talks to us about their dress fabrics and makeup. I roll my eyes and say, "Amber, you realize that's not what we are talking about, right?"

She turns to me and smiles, "I know, you guys are making fun of them, while I sit here and compliment their beauty," she says defensively.

Peeta laughs. "Their beauty? They're pretty from the outside, but I'd hate to their inside. They're so stuck-up."

I smile. I love that Peeta isn't a jerk like other guys. I look up at him lovingly, and that's when I hear Clove start to laugh her ass off. I thought she was laughing at me, but actually she was laughing at one of the toddlers freaking out on TV because they're out of mascara. I laugh along with Peeta as Amber stares at Peeta's face carefully. I turn to look at her and she turns to me and smiles. She sits up from the floor and sits next to me on the other side. She whispers in my ear, "And that's why you should keep him and never lose him."

I turn my head to look at her. And I actually smile. That's the first thing that has come out of her mouth that I truly believe, and in her eyes, she seems like she really means it. After a few minutes, Amber decides to leave. We all say goodbye and we watch TV until midnight. Clove starts to fall asleep in the living chair. I cuddle closer to Peeta and start to fall asleep. He starts to doze off too until I hear a loud crash in the house. _The door_, I think to myself as someone comes in shouting my name. It makes Peeta jolt awake and stand up from the couch. He grabs a lamp to prepare himself. Clove is staring at the person in horror.

It's Marisol, her head bleeding and blood trickling down her forehead, holding Amber by having a hand, almost choking her. She holds a knife near Amber's neck as Amber cries. "Now, which one of you told the police about me?" **please read the following:**

**TON, TON, TON! I'm updating as fast as I can. I'll be writing longer chapters, so I need more time. BUT, don't worry because longer chapters, mean better story! :P **


	17. More Trouble

**This one is VERY long, or so it's the longest I've ever written. I've been working on it for about a week, and I hope you guys like it!**

**More Trouble**

I'm standing right in place, not being able to process the scene happening right in front of me. Fear, fear is the only thing that I can think of. All my feelings are crashed. The only thing that keeps me steady on my feet is Peeta's hand still holding onto mine. I can feel his nervousness. But, his anger is much stronger. I'm begging in him, in my head, not to do anything bad-tempered. I'm as desperate as I was back in that hospital I already loathe. My heart is beating so hard, that it'd probably beat out of my chest. The blood, the blood makes my stomach churn as the smell hits my nose. Marisol's eyes are filled with craziness. While Amber's eyes only show the great fear that I must be showing also. I squeeze Peeta's hand tighter, trying to get my mind to think straight. Blood covers Amber's arms. The scene is too much for me to handle. I've never seen so much blood in my life. Thinking about the worse things that can happen in this moment, I hear a crashing sound outside, then police sirens. My mind spins as Peeta pulls me back when Marisol focuses on the windows, panic glowing in her eyes filled with insanity.

Marisol turns her head in our direction in less than a half a second. A small expression of fear flashes over her quickly before the anger grows in her as well. "Who! I'm asking you! Who did it, because if I go down, you all go down with me, including the piece of crap right here with me who planned all of this!" She says, eyeing Amber.

"I didn't do anything!" Screams Amber.

"Shut up!" Marisol snaps at her, deepening the knife on her neck, making a new river of blood flow down her neck and onto her chest. Clove moves closer to me, eyeing the vase on the coffee table.

I tighten my grip on Peeta, as the anger grows in him. "What do you want! What are you talking about?" Peeta yells at her, his face red with fury. I haven't seen Peeta this angry. His face is redder than an apple. That might be an exaggeration, but he looks as if he were to explode. The sirens are still going, making me more uneasy. Why don't they just barge in and take this woman away from here? The blood flowing from Amber's neck makes my stomach churn, this time a lot more apparent from the outside. My eyes burn for a second, making them tear up. The smell and the sight of blood don't mix well with my senses. Marisol's the one in complete tears, while she still has the backbone to murder someone at the same time. But, those are psycho ways, and I don't know how they think.

Marisol's eyes widen and the tears stop abruptly. Her anger is visible just by the slight shine that glows in her eyes. She starts to cackle, out of nowhere. "What? The trash you're dating never told you? No, I think she's not dumb enough to keep it from you. Amber over here, is the stupid one," she says, finally stabbing Amber on her shoulder. When the knife pierced through her shoulder, it hurt me more than it must have hurt her. A pain in my chest starts to beat my lungs and the rest of my organs, moving down to my stomach. My ears stop working as I feel Peeta let go of my head and the last thing I hear is the vase crash that Clove was eyeing. Everything around me acts in slow motion. I don't have the time to react and stop Peeta from pinning Marisol to the floor or abstain Clove from throwing the vase at Marisol's forehead. Tears make my eyes burn, forcing me to close my eyes and drown the tears, not letting them form. When I open my eyes again, Peeta is still on the floor, on his knees, and looking down at Marisol who is now unconscious and lying on the floor, blood running down from her forehead. Clove is breathing heavily, while she crashes to the floor in tears. Amber screams in pain, holding the knife that still manages to stay pierced in her shoulder. The doors finally flies open, letting the faded sound of sirens penetrate through the air. The door makes a loud impact with the wall behind it, startling me. I zoom back into what is my reality. My surroundings slice my heart open.

Peeta stays on the floor as the police pick her body up and drag Marisol out the door. Amber cries in pain as medics carry her to the ambulance. Still not being able to lessen the feeling of astonishment, I kneel next to Peeta and he immediately pulls me into a hug. He holds me tighter than he has ever. I can hear the rushed beats of his heart. His warmth, for the first time, doesn't feel as comforting as it used to. That's because he's somewhat shocked. I don't know what he's feeling, but I can conclude it isn't so different from what I'm feeling. I'm lost in outer space. My thoughts are a jumbled up. I can't think clearly. And fear still lingers around in my head.

I hear Clove's silent crying as Silvia rushes through the door along with father and Peeta's brother. Peeta's father is here also, looking angry as for Peeta's brother, he looks something of a mixture of shame and hurt. Did he really love that lunatic? He did marry her, so he must have. Peeta's father looks around and puts his hands on his face. Silvia is asking us all questions we don't feel like answering…because the answers are in our faces and everywhere around us. Clove rushes to pull her mother into an embrace, soaking her mother's vintage shirt with tears. The yellow walls of the house are suddenly too bright for my vision. The pain on my knee is settling, but not for long. The shiny wooden floor is glistening. Am I losing it? I realize it the light from the police cars. But to me, for at least a second, it looked as if they were a little too bright.

After the police ask us questions, the medics check on us, and Peeta leaves with his brother and father without another word to me, I go upstairs with Clove following me. Father is still helping Silvia clean up the mess that the broken vase did and the…blood. I shudder as the images of what just occurred about an hour ago flash in my mind. The blood hits my nose as if it is still fresh in my mind. And it is, but I got myself set on another goal besides drowning deeper into the nightmare and scare that my eyes saw and my mind barely processed. I'm going to _forget. _

I sit on my bed, looking up at Clove as she enters my room, sitting on the edge of it as I lay on the bed, sighing heavily. I begin to burry my mind in thoughts of a happier time, trying to get myself to stop the tears, when Clove says, "Think of it this way Katniss. At least the woman is out of our lives forever, and we're out of danger," she says, sounding a bit…happy?

I sit up and stare at her face blankly. A moment ago she was crying her eyes out, and the next, she's sounding hopeful and happy. "Yeah, Katniss. I can change my mind pretty quick. We need to forget. I don't know about you," she says, getting off the bed, "but I'm going to wipe this memory right off the surface of my mind. There's no way I'm going to let this get at me. I'm stronger than a dire memory." And with that, she walks out the room, shutting the door lightly.

I look around the room. The light green walls are darker than usual because of the lights. The wooden floor still shines because of the rays of light coming from the moon. I sigh and lay back down on my soft bed. All I can think about are those men that Marisol hired, those who threatened me. Maybe Clove's right. No…She _is _right. If I'm as strong as everyone else thinks of me, than I'm not going to let this memory take the rest of my life down in the darkness and vileness that it is. Clove is strong, very strong. Because for what I know, she healed faster than a car can run. I want to forget this, and I _am _going to forget it. I slowly fall into a dreamless night, determined to wipe the memories off my mind. And with the very last spark of hope left in me, when I look back into it, it's not there anymore. That's when I realize that nothing can take me down. I never really remembered forgetting things to be so easy. A smile forms on my face as I think of the stupidest thought ever. _Forgetting things easily has to be one of the benefits of being old. _

_**. . .**_

I wake up to the sound of Clove waking me up. She yells, "Katniss, c'mon, we're going to be late for school!" Her voice comes from downstairs, annoyed and hurried.

I groan and get up. I has been about two weeks already. We've been in school for about one in a half. Peeta and the rest of us have forgotten about Marisol and everything. She's no longer a problem in our lives, and it makes me feel so happy I could scream. Now that Peeta's father and my father let Peeta and I be together, it makes everything so much easier. Life hasn't been this good before. I've been talking to Prim a lot more, I _try _to stay out of trouble, and I've learned to deal with my problems without weakening, thanks to Clove's thankful lecture. Mother and I have been talking too. I can remember the conversation we were having about Peeta, and it made me both blush and get angry at her.

_"So, how is it with you and your troublemaker?" She asks, laughing afterwards._

_ "We're great, mom. Very," I say, sounding a bit more mysterious than what I went for. _

_ I wasn't expecting her to scream on the phone, but she did. "Katniss! Please tell me you have not slept with Peeta! You're too young for that stuff. Did he pressure you into it? Oh my goodness, Katniss! Are you serious? You don't know what could happen! You might get pregnant…and….and," she breaks into tears without me being able to react because I have no idea what she has been babbling about. It almost made me laugh because she actually though that's what I was talking about. I didn't even mean to infer that. I wanted to say something, but the words just came out mumbled and then I couldn't finish because the laughter in my body exploded. I was laughing for minutes when she finally says, "Katniss, please tell me you didn't."  
>"No, mom! I would never do that before thinking about the consequences. And those being either father would kill Peeta, or you'd kill me."<em>

_ "So, you were joking?" I reply with a laugh and I can almost feel the anger she's got built up in her. But, being as my mom is, she says, "So Katniss, have you seen him naked? Is he hot? Because your father is the sexiest man alive!"_

_ I stop laughing and I almost choke on the words. "MOM! Why would you ever tell me that?" But, I thought of a better way to get back at her. "Yeah, I've seen him naked. He's sizzling. He has strong arms, nice abs, and he's got a big…"_

_ "Katniss Everdeen! Do not finish that sentence! I don't need to know more," she says. After a minute, we start to laugh our asses off._

Mother and I have them best times together. I miss her a lot, more than I thought I would. She promised she'd come and visit this summer. She told me I'd probably be going back to New York for my senior year. I haven't talked to anyone about that, not even Peeta. I need to, and I know it.

I hear Peeta yell from downstairs, "If she doesn't get up, throw a bucket of cold water on her! I swear, one more tardy and I'm dead!" Then, I hear his laughter. "Oh yeah…so will you Katniss!"

I get up in half a second at the memory. Mrs. Navadia, the vice principle, has given Peeta and me many detention slips for the many times we've been late. If I get one more, I'd get in a lot of trouble. Even thought I am a troublemaker, I think I won't want to be stuck in "in office detention" with that creepy, wearing too much makeup, and big eyed woman. She wears eye shadow that is too…just too much. If only she knew how many rude things us kid say about her makeup…

"Katniss! I'M GOING UP THERE IN TEN SECONDS, AND IF YOUR NOT DONE, I'M DRAGGING THE WAY YOU ARE," Peeta yells, extremely annoyed.

I smirk and drop the pants I was going to put on. I stand right in front of the door in my undergarments (bra and underwear). I hear his footsteps and he flies the door open. I'm folding my arms and I shift my weight to my right hip. His annoyed faced is replaced by a playful smirk as he looks up and down my body. I raise an eyebrow and ask, "You wouldn't want to take me to school wearing…_this…_would you?"

"You'd be surprised. But, since I'm not letting _anyone _see you like that, I'm going to sit here and wait," he says, chuckling as he sits on the edge of my bed.

"So what? Are you going to watch me change? That's strange, Peeta," I say, teasingly, as I put on my jean shorts, followed by my gray t-shirt.

"Well, it may be strange, but only I can see you wearing such things," he replies defensively, using a British accent. I laugh at his remarkably good attempt to sound British.

"You know what, baby, you should be an actor," I exclaim, tying my sneakers and brushing my hair quickly, not caring enough to look at the mirror.

He looks at me with a blank expression on his face. Then, he bursts into a laughing fit that I expected. "Are you kidding?"

I raise an eyebrow. "No, I'm not kidding." I try not to laugh.

He tries to stop laughing as he says, "Well then, you know what an actor need?" I shake my head. He walks to me and wraps his arms around my waist from behind. "He needs his girlfriend to stop making him be late." In a flash, he throws me over his shoulder. I scream and laugh at the same time. Downstairs, Clove waits, holding my book bag in her hands. Peeta runs out the door quickly. He's really fast. Maybe a little _too _fast. My mind races back to the fact I'm over his strong shoulder, I'm laughing so hard that I think all the blood is draining out of my head, and Clove is right behind us, running almost as fast as Peeta.

They race through the streets. On the way, I hear many people shouting rude things at us as Peeta makes his way around them. Clove is laughing right behind us. The wind blows on me even though it's quite hot outside. I decide to let Peeta carry me the whole way since I don't feel like walking. When we get to the school, there are still kids outside. Many kids. Peeta puts me down and I glare at both of them. Clove smiles and says, "Revenge!"

I turn my head to look at Peeta. He shrugs and says, "That's for making me bake."

I raise an eyebrow. "So, you guys did all this to get revenge on me. This is your idea of a prank? Getting me to wake up very early without me realizing it?"

"Yup, pretty much."

"Yeah, that's it."

I nod my head in understanding. "Okay, so, let me get this straight. We're even, right?"

"Sure."

"Whatever."

I start to walk back and forth, nodding my head. "Okay, so you guys realize that I'm going to get revenge in the worse possible way ever?"

Silence. They look at each other and simultaneously, they say, nervously, "We don't care!"

I smile, a little too jolly. "Okay, let's get to class."

. . .

My last class of the day is music. Here, here is where my music teacher, Mr. Cole, makes me sing for the entire class because he knows my "potential." When he says that, I laugh along with the other students, knowing that I have as much potential as a cow. I don't get why he makes me sing so much, but the other students tell me that I have talent. I don't listen to them, but it feels a little good to get compliments. But then it just feels annoying because you don't want to hear it anymore. Peeta, Clove, and Amber all have this class with me. Mr. Cole is a very nice man. He makes jokes and lets us play with his instruments even though we're practically destroying them. I get in trouble in this class when I step over the line when I get into an argument with this girl called Piper Jeanne. She's not in love with Peeta…she just likes to get on peoples' nerves a lot. She gives me a hard time, but Mr. Cole tells me not to be nit-picking and drop the argument when it's time to drop it. But, that bitch is so annoying, that I have a really hard time dropping it. She's got many problems with other students. I just don't know how she hasn't gotten jumped yet.

Mr. Cole is standing in front of the classroom. Instruments are all over the classroom, organized neatly. "Today class, I just want to announce the rules and requirements for the talent show.." The class groans along with me. I know he's going to say something about me auditioning for the talent show. And there's no way I'm doing that. "You have to audition," he says, his jolly voice still remains, ignoring the groans from the class. "Then, if you make it, you need to be ready by next Friday." I turn my head to look at Clove. She's got a paper airplane, ready to shoot at Piper. She looks at me and laughs. Clove sits next to me, and Peeta sits all the way in the back, while Clove and I get the third to first row, with Piper right in front of Clove. Some students have stopped paying attention now that Mr. Cole is writing down rules on the board. They are now focusing on us.

Clove whispers, "Shall we?"

Before I can say anything, Piper turns around and says to us, "Losers, shut up!" Then she rolls her eyes and turns her attention to the board.

I turn to look at Peeta who looks at me and laughs silently. He nods and I turn back around.

I nod and grin, "We shall." I rip a page of notebook paper and make it into a ball. Clove throws me an elastic band to use as I slingshot. The students, now following on with our plan, start to train their full attention on us. Clove, with her free hand, puts three fingers up, then two, and then one. I let go of my slingshot and the paper hits Piper right on the head, hard. It's paper, but it sounded like it hurt. Clove shoots her paper airplane right on her face when she turns around. Piper turns red as a cherry.

She stands up and screams at us. "You stupid hoes! How dare you!" She glares at her with her green eyes. Her freckles show greatly and I smile to myself.

"Oh, we're hoes? Well then, Freckle-Faced, you're a dumbass," I reply, genuinely. The class laughs and Mr. Cole, hearing everything we're saying gives me a look as if to remember what he said about dropping the argument. But when Clove opens her mouth, it makes me laugh too much.

"You know what they say about people who call others hoes?..They call those people Penelope. We're not hoes Pig Nose," Clove replies, very rudely and angrily. Her crush, named Dez, is in this class. Everyone laughs. Her crush has really dark hair with dark, dark blue eyes. His are like a night ocean, not like Peeta's. Peeta and Dez are good friends. That's why Clove gets to talk to him. Unlike us, Dez doesn't get into trouble. He's an honor student, being influenced by Peeta, which isn't good. But, Dez can be really hot-tempered and rude to teachers. There have been many times when he has stormed out because he can't stand some teachers in this school, which I can't blame him for.

Piper's eyes fill with fake tears when she turns to Mr. Cole. He says, "That's enough already!"

She turns around and smiles evilly at us. I laugh and she gets so angry that she shouts, "Bitch!"

"I'm a bitch? You're a slut," I reply, getting furious.

"Look who's talking! The girl who slept with the entire football team. Hoe."

I bite down on my teeth. I want to kill her right now. She smiles and I almost break. "Oh really? How about one who can't? You're so desperate that you've slept with girls."

Her eyes widen and she stops her foot. "You're such a bitch. No wonder some psycho tried to kill you."

At the memory, and she knowing that, I burst. But, I keep it down and smile. Clove looks at me with wide eyes, probably remembering it and wondering how this bitch knows such thing. "Oh, you love me that much that you have to stalk me?"

"You're a brat," she says, picking up her pencil and flinging it at my face, barely missing my eye.

"That is enough! One more thing, and both of you got to the office!" Mr. Cole yells.

"What are you, Katniss? Well, Katniss Everdeen is a slut, hoe, bitch, and a girl who can't even sing," she snaps.

The class hoots and some "ooo". Piper smiles devilishly at me and I get up from my desk, filled with anger. The class is silent and some students prepare themselves for a fight. Mr. Cole yells at me to stop it. But, the anger building up in me every second that smirk is on her face, blocks out his begging. I pull on her hair, hard, my face is an inch away from hers and I growl, "Say it one more time."

"A girl who can't even sing," she says, slowly as if talking to an idiot, right in my face. I feel the heat engulf my face. This girl standing right in front of me has provoked the worst in me to come out. And all I want to do is to kill her. Mr. Cole, before I can even make a move, grabs my arm and pulls me out the door of the classroom as I keep my deadly eyes on Piper, who now smiles and waves at me. The class is silent. As Mr. Cole lets go of my arm, I start explaining to him, quickly, why I had to say them back. He shuts me up by interrupting me.

"Katniss, I have told you to control yourself. And I know you tried, but you just have to tried harder."

I groan in frustration. "But Mr. Cole, I'm already trying hard in school, and now I have to put up with that…that…bullshit?" I say, as nicely as that word can sound.

"Don't use that type of language! Katniss, just tried. And if you haven't noticed, you're other grades are getting better, but your music grades are plummeting. And the only way to bring them up is by entering the talent show. The winner gets a test grade of 100%"

I sigh, giving up, I reply, "Okay, I'll do it. But just to let you know…you're killing me."

He laughs, "Alright, I have to admit, I am. But, there's a lot of talented kids in this school. So, you need…," he gets interrupted by screams that seem to be coming from the classroom. We rush in and see the class yelling "fight" and Clove on top of Piper, pulling out her hair and almost strangling her with the other. Peeta and Dez pull the girls off each other as Mr. Cole yells at how disappointed he is with the class. Behind his back, I flash a bright smile and Clove and put high thumbs-up in the air. I must really look goofy because it makes the entire class laugh and Clove does the same. Mr. Cole turns around to see what they're laughing at. Before he can see me, I stop the stupid act. He's confused and turns back to the class as the bell rings. The principle and the vice principle get called up. They take Piper and Clove to the office. I don't want Clove to get into trouble, but I can't stand girls like Piper, and it's clear that Clove can't either.

Before I can meat Peeta at the door, Mr. Cole calls me to his desk. I sigh and turn on my heels in his direction. "You need to pick an act. You'd probably want to sing," he says, and I give him a cynical look. He shakes his head, "Of course, I already knew that. Anyways, stay out of trouble, Dear."

I sigh again and boringly, I reply, "Yes, Mr. Cole."

He nods and I head for the door. I take Peeta's hand and we walk into the hallways. "I've never seen you so angry like that," he says, dumbfounded, as we walk.

I sigh and reply, "Well, I can get much angrier than that. Anyways, guess what Mr. Cole said."

He turns his head to look at me in the face. It takes him seconds to figure out what it is. He smiles, "Oh no, don't tell me that he made you do the talent show!" He said is so girly that, almost forgetting the reason why I'm angry, I laugh hard. He kisses my cheek as we walk out of school after going to our lockers. Outside, we sit on the steps of the school and wait for Clove. While we wait, Peeta and I talk about what I'm doing for the talent show.

"Isn't it obvious? You'll sing," he says, wrapping and arm around my waist.

"Yeah, but what song?" I say, pondering about a song. Suddenly, nervousness starts to crawl up my body. What if…what if I mess up, or I make I fool out of myself? "Peeta, do you really think I'm a good singer?"

He looks at me in the face, lovingly. He smiles, "Of course I do. You remember when we went to the beach, and on the way we were singing in the car? Well, I almost died of a heart attack when I heard you sing because my heart skipped not one beat, but hundreds."

I blush as he pulls me closer. Then, Clove comes outside, arguing with herself. "Ugh! Guess what, Katniss. I GOT SUSPENDED FOR THREE DAYS AND THAT UGLIER VERSION OF PENELOPE DIDN'T!"

I shake my head, "Think of it this way, Clove. Three days away from Penelope, away from school, and away from boring crap."

She shakes her head sadly. "And three days away from him," she mumbles. She sits down with us. I know she's talking about Dez. Peeta looks at us suspiciously, and then grins. How can he figure things out so easily?

Peeta, Clove, and I walk home. Outside, near the door, Peeta has his arms wrapped around my waist and mine around his neck. He grins and says, "How come you never told me that Clove had a crush on Dez?"

His blue eyes look at me in the most adorable way. His lips are just inches away from mine, and apparently, that's all I can look at and focus on…his lips. I don't respond and he laughs, pressing his lips on mine. That comforting warmth is back, which now engulfs me in the most incredible way. His lips meet mine repeatedly until we hear someone clear their throat. In the doorway, stands father, smiling, but looking at Peeta with deadly eyes. Peeta pulls away, and very confidently, he says, "Hello, Mr. Everdeen," and then he smiles.

I try my best not to laugh as father smiles and nods his head. "I'll give you guys one second. And I mean that literally." He walks into the house again. And right away, I crash my lips on to Peeta's. From inside, father yells, "Katniss Everdeen, do you must always make me proud," he shouts in the same British accent Peeta did. I laugh as Peeta kisses me one more time and then leaves. I walk into the house and upstairs to my room where Clove sits on my bed, a mess already on the bed of homework.

She looks up and sighs, "Homework time!" She says, with false joy.

"Hooray!" I sigh. We get to work and while we do, I tell Clove about the talent show. She doesn't act surprise because she already saw it coming too. We're working on our math homework when I groan in frustration. "That's it! I cannot take one more second of this stupid homework. I'm calling Peeta. I need to leave this stupid house."

Clove laughs. "Katniss, you'd get in trouble."

She obviously knows I don't care. "I don't give a two cents! I'm freaking out here."

"Are you guys gonna do it in a tree house?" She teases.

I laugh and say, "Maybe."

She gasps, laughing afterward. "How about, we put on some music and you practice your singing. I have a good idea for a song."

I sigh, "Peeta still sounds better!" I lay on the wooden floor, texting Peeta.

"How about…_Brokenhearted_ by Karmin," she tries, ignoring me.

"What are the lyrics?" I say, as she passes me a paper. I start to read and as I read it, I realize I know this song. "Oh, I know this one. I like it."

Clove, triumphantly, teases, "You see-e-e-e," stretching the word 'see'.

I laugh and ask, "Any other ideas? For like, back up?" I hear my phone vibrate. I check it to read Peeta's text. I laugh so hard that I spit out water that I was drinking on the wooden floor.

Peeta- _My brother's dog just peed on him._

Me- _Lol, how's he doing anyway?_

Peeta- _terrible. I guess he really did love her. Too bad she doesn't deserve someone like my brother. I keep telling him he's going to find another girl. And someday, he'd be as lucky as me._

I blush furiously as Clove leans over me and reads the text. She laughs and continues with her ideas. "What about…._Gotta Be You _by One Direction?"

"Ahhh, it's a little too slow," I reply, texting Peeta back.

Me- _If it weren't for the fact that I can't make any contact with you, I'd kiss you right now._

Peeta- _I'd do so much more than kiss you ;)_

Me- _;)_

Peeta- _I need to go before the dog pees on me! Bye, babe :)_

I laugh and text him goodbye. I haven't realize Clove is still giving me ideas about songs. She goes on and on as I start to text Glimmer and Demeter. If I call them, Clove will know I'm not paying attention. But, before I can even reply to a text, Clove shouts, "Katniss, c'mon. You're gonna fail music class!"

"Is music that important?" I say, putting the phone down.

"Yes, unless if you want to stay back," she says, raising an eyebrow. I stay silent. "I thought so. Okay, now we need wardrobe."

"Hey, I think Dez likes you," I say, bringing it up randomly, making sure that she gets sucked right into the trap of changing the subject.

She blushes almost immediately. Then, she starts talking fast and laughs in between sentences. I roll my eyes and start to text Demeter and Glimmer when I get a phone call. It's mother. I signal Clove to shut up by throwing a pillow at her face. She frowns as I pick up the phone. "Hi, mom."

"Sweetie, we need you to get here in New York, quickly. You're father is on his way to get you to the airport."

Her voice seems so worried that it makes me sound worry without even knowing what it is. "What's wrong?"

"It's Prim. She's got a very bad sickness. She's…she's dying." Then, she bursts into tears. And right away, I drop the phone, wondering why every bad thing happens.

**Oh no! Not Primrose! :o Can you guess what happens next? Gotta warn you, BIG changes.**


	18. Hoodwink

**Hoodwink**

"Why would you do that? You scared me to death, mother!" I yell at her, through the phone. I can hear Prim laughing in the background. I'm furious at them. How could they trick me like that? Mother and Prim decided to give me a heart attack by pulling a joke on me, which I didn't find humorous at all. They don't know how worried I was. Now, pure anger rushes through me. It's not funny. There was a moment where I could just swear my heart stopped beating. Pulling a joke on someone like that isn't clever, better yet, pulling a joke like that on _me, _isn't intelligent.

I can't find the words to explain what they were thinking. As we talk on the phone, they explain to me how they had nothing stimulating to do, and they decided to deceive me and laugh at me. I roll my eyes. While I'm on the phone, Clove continues on her homework, which I have given up on already. Prim gets on the phone, continuing to laugh at me. Her laughter spreads a smile on my face. That couldn't possibly bother me.

"Prim, that is not funny. You almost killed me!" I tell her, cracking up at the end. It may not be funny to me, but there's no way I could yell at Prim. On the contrary, that doesn't keep from telling her how wrong it was. My heart could of stopped, and it almost did.

Prim giggles and says, "Sorry, Katniss. Mom and I were bored, so we decided to mess with you."

I roll my eyes and exclaim, "Couldn't you two bother someone else? I'm sure father would be delighted to be extremely moved by mother alarming him that you're dead," I finish with sarcasm at the end.

She laughs, "Good idea, Katniss," she starts out sarcastically, "I'm sure father would die because he's so old," she teases.

The humor in that is indescribable. I start to laugh until I can't feel my stomach. "Prim, you tell him that. I bet he'd die before mother can explain to him what's wrong." It's wrong to do so, and it's even worse to encourage her to pull one like that on father. But I'm sure it wouldn't be a big deal, since she's just having fun. I want Prim to have fun because it's much better than having her be depressing.

"Anyways, you know what's good for you?" She asks, a bit teasingly.

I sigh, "Yes, Prim?"

"Hang up the phone," she says. "I know you, and you were just in the middle of homework. I think you should finish that."

"I wasn't in the middle of homework, Prim," I lie.

"Yes she is!" Clove yells. "And then, she gave up and started talking about how she needs to see Peeta," she says, ripping the phone from my hand and talking to Primrose. She leaves the room, babbling on about the talent show I'm in. Her voice lowers to a whisper, and all I hear is the name Peeta. That's all it takes to indicate she's teasing me.

I growl at her and jump on the bed again. I'm so relieved that it was a joke. Even though it was a prank, I still can't get it out of my mind. What if Prim really was in that position? I manage to get it off my mind by finishing my math homework. Numbers, equations, and crap like that are easy to me. But I hate doing them, especially for homework. There are many things I have to do. First, the talent show. I'm not in the mood, music class is the easiest, but when he gives those quizzes about 400 year-old composers, I fail hard every time. That's the only reason why I'm failing…because I don't bother to study that crap. The rest of my homework is no pain. I finish in minutes, with a very messy job, and hop off the bed, going into the shower. I get ready to sleep, and hope that Friday ends quickly.

I wake up to sound of someone yelling. Peeta and Clove. This time, I don't bother to get up. I look at the clock to realize we are late. I grin and fall back asleep until someone picks me up from the bed, throws me over their strong shoulder, and whispers in my ear, "I wasn't kidding."

My eyes widen as I yell, "Put me down, Peeta! NOW!" He doesn't. We walk out the door and we head in the same direction we do to get to school, with Clove right behind us, holding my bag.

"PEETA, I SWEAR, IF YOU DON'T PUT ME DOWN, I WON'T EVER KISS YOU!" I yell at Peeta at the top of my lungs. Rage fills my body as he starts to laugh. I pull on his hair, hard, and whisper in his air, angrily, "I'm not joking."

"You won't be able to resist," he says, moving his head away from me so I don't pull on his hair. As I hang from his shoulder, I look down at my bag, which Clove has in her hands. I remember I have my extra jeans in there. I raise an eyebrow and smirk. _I came prepared, idiots._

We enter the school with Clove laughing behind me. I look at myself to realize I'm wearing shorts with a blue t-shirt. I glare at Clove, still over Peeta's shoulder. He finally puts me down when we're in the hallways. No one is in the hallways. I smile and tease, "We're still late anyways."

Peeta shrugs, "You're at school, wearing that," he grins. "Lesson learned, right?"

I shake my head. "Nope," I say, ripping my bag from Clove's hands and pulling out my jeans. "You see, I have these in here," I grin, running off to the bathroom to change. I look into the mirror and braid my hair neatly. The blue t-shirt is fine to me, because truthfully, I don't care. My jeans go up to my knees, which is fine with me. I open the door to the bathroom to leave. Once I do, they're still in the hallways. I laugh at them. "Don't try that again. And Peeta?"

He stares at the floor, and then looks up at me. "Yeah?"

I walk up to him and whisper in his ear, "I wasn't kidding," returning the response. "I'm not going to kiss you…ever." He looks at me, a blank expression plastered on his face. I smile as Clove groans and stalks off to her class she's late to. Peeta and I walk the rest of the way, until he starts to laugh. "What?" I ask, annoyed.

"You're serious?" He asks, sounding doubtful.

"Yep," is all I say as we walk into math class.

The rest of the day is boring. History keeps me half asleep, Chemistry gets me angry and causes me to get detention because I yelled at the teacher, and then there's P.E. I love this class, not only because of the coaches, but because it actually keeps me awake. Clove and Peeta have this class with me, like almost every other class. Girls play basketball against the boys, and they win. The boys win. It makes me angry because it isn't fair. These girls are focused on other boys and how "hot" they look while Clove and I work our asses off trying to play. Clove gets furious and throws a basketball at one of the girls because she insults Clove, making her nose bleed. She gets in big trouble for that one, but that girl deserves it, so I don't lecture Clove for anything. Clove was supposed to stay home this entire day, but she didn't because Silvia promised the Principle that Clove will behave, when we all know that isn't going to happen.

"Smart move, Clove," one of the boys says, who I realize is Dez. "All the boys hate that girl. She definitely deserved it." At that, Clove blushes, making me grin.

** . . .**

"T. G. I. F!" Clove yells, as we walk back home.

"Shut up, Clove," Peeta whispers as people in the streets stare at us. "People think we're crazy," he laughs, holding my hand as we walk. He still doesn't think I'm serious about not kissing him, but I'm dead serious.

"No, they think _I'm _crazy, Peeta. Not you two old ladies," she teases. Peeta rolls his eyes as we walk into the house. Clove rushes upstairs to lock herself into her room, leaving Peeta and me alone in the living room. He pulls me close to him and wraps his arms around my waist. I wrap my arms around his neck. He leans in to kiss me, but I put a hand over his mouth. I push him away from me and smile.

"I'm dead serious, Peeta," I say, sticking my tongue out at him.

He groans and stomps his foot on the floor like a little kid. "Then what am I supposed to do?"

I laugh and head up for the stairs, "Take a nap or something."

He opens his mouth, but shuts it again, rethinking the possibility if he would take nap. He nods his head, "You know what, that's a good idea." He smiles and walks over to the couch. "If you need me, I'll be taking a nap on the couch."

I roll my eyes and laugh to myself as I walk up the stairs. I open the door to my room and pick up my phone. I throw myself on the bed as I dial the number that belongs to my mother. The phone rings a bit and then I hear my mother's voice. "Hello, Kitty-Kat."

I groan. "Mom, don't call me that."

She laughs, "Oh sweetie, okay I won't. Anyways, I want to apologize for scaring you like that, you know, the prank thing. Prim was bored, and I just came home, very tired. I thought it'd be good to spend time with Prim since I don't get the chance to often."

"You don't need to explain mom, I get it," I say, understandingly. "Anyways, how are things over there?"

"Just great, Prim got straight A's, like always. I got a promotion, which is good because I get paid more, so I don't have to work. That means, I can spend more time with Prim," she says, excitedly.

"That's amazing mom!" It really is. Now I won't feel as if Prim is lonely most of the time. She'll have my mom. But, I still need my little sister. "So, how's Prim and dad?"

"Busy, as always. Prim is taking a nap, she's rather tired. She finished soccer practice, and then, she rushed to take a nap straight for her room. How are things going over there? And how's Clove? Silvia told me about her getting into a lot of trouble lately."

"Great, mother. My music teacher is making participate in a talent show because my grades are going south. Clove got into some trouble like always because she threw a basketball at some girl, and getting her a bloody nose," I explain, very quickly.

"Wait, wait, wait. Back it up, Katniss. You're in a talent show?" I was going to reply, but she interrupts me. "That's great! I bet you'll win, and it's good to get your grades up. Anyways, let's cut to the case. How are you and Peeta?" She asks, excitedly. She has an interest in my relationship with Peeta.

I roll my eyes and say, "Mother, we're good. Stop obsessing."

She sighs. "I just want to make sure you won't make that mistake I made too early."

"There's no reason for you to worry, mom. I know perfectly that it's better to wait, and we haven't done anything yet," I explain, reassuringly.

"I know that, sweetie. But, when it comes to trouble, you two are a tough nut to crack. And there's a lot of trouble becoming a teen mother," she warns.

It's ridiculous, really. She doesn't trust me? I'm not angry at her, I know she just doesn't want me to make the same mistakes she made. But I just don't want her to keep annoying me with the same thing repeatedly. "Mom, I've heard you say the same thing since I was fifteen. I think you've said it enough times already for it to become clear to me."

"Well sweetie, it wasn't the biggest mistake I've made. I had you and Prim! You two are the greatest gift I have ever gotten," she says, I can just feel her smiling. I smile as she says, "And, I get that you're young and free. This is your time to make mistakes and learn from them. But, I just want you to try your best to be careful and make wise decisions."

"I'm not perfect mom," I sigh. At that moment, Peeta comes inside and lays next to me on the bed, laughing as he plays a game on his phone. I smile to myself and look up at him. Our faces are inches away from each other. He looks up at me and gives me a goofy smile. I laugh while still on the phone, startling mother.

"Katniss, is that Peeta?" She says, probably wondering why Peeta's home with me so late?

I roll my eyes and say, "Yes, mother."

She coughs and asks, "Tell him I said hello."

"Okay," I sigh. "Peeta, my mom says hello." He has the phone above his face as he plays the game. I laugh as the phone slips out of his hands and he drops his phone on his face. He rubs his nose and mouths '_hello'_. "He says hello."

"Well, I better go. You're sister is awake and I need to get started on dinner, at nine o'clock. Bye, sweetie."

"Bye mom," I say, as I hang up the phone. I look at Peeta as he plays on his phone. He's focused so much that he doesn't realize that I'm getting off the bed.

Before I know it, he puts the phone down and pulls me back onto the bed. "Where do you think you're going?" He grins.

"Nowhere," I reply, weakly and barely above a whisper. He looks into my eyes, as I look into his. His blue eyes catch me for a second until I feel his lips onto mine. He climbs on top of me, not putting all his weight on me. I wrap my arms around his neck as his hands move down from hips to my thighs. His lips are still on mine until he pulls away.

"So, about not kissing me…do you give up now?" He teases.

"Yes," I reply, quickly. He grins as I crash my lips onto his again. He kisses me repeatedly as I run my hands through his hair. That's when I hear her scream. Clove. It's not a scream that indicates danger, but it's a scream that indicates a _different _danger. It's the scream that Clove lets out when she's excited.

I pull away from Peeta and without any warning, I push him off me. I laugh as he pouts, playfully. "Katniss, I'm going to take a nap, since you don't want to kiss me," he says, with playful sadness.

"Go ahead," I tease. He frowns and turns his head away from me, resting on the pillow. I roll my eyes and run to the bed to jump on him. He smiles and pulls me closer to him, his face inches from mine.

He looks into my eyes again and whispers, "I love you."

"No, I love you more," I say, smiling. He kisses me softly. After minutes, he dozes off, leaving me awake. I get off the bed slowly and I open the door and head out into the hallway, to bump into someone. Clove. She was looking down into a cooking book, laughing until she bumps into me.

"Katniss, you'd not believe what I found," she says, standing up and ignoring the fact that we just bumped into each other.

I glare at her for a second. _Dimwit, _I think to myself. "What did you find, Clove," I say, sighing, and rubbing my arm where she bumped into me.

She laughs, "I found out how to make explosive bread!" She jumps up and down, excitedly. My face brightens. That mischievous rush I usually get sets sparks to erupt in me. When Clove looks into that cook book, she finds things ordinary people wouldn't.

"Seriously, Clove? Now way," I say, both dumbfounded and fascinated.

"Heck yeah!" She stands beside me, pointing to where the explanation for explosive bread is. "I have no idea what kind of cookbook has this type of information in it, but it's officially my favorite.

"No one finds the type of information that you do, Clove." I laugh, grabbing the cookbook from her and reading what is says. "You know what, we should try it."

"Now?" She asks, sounding a bit unsure. I look down at her in a suspicious way. She laughs and replies, "Yeah you're right. It's too good to miss out on."

We run for the kitchen, Clove screaming, "EXPLOSIVE BREEEEAAADDD!" She dances the entire way. I laugh as we sit down on a stool and start reading over what we need. I look over at the clock, 11:00 PM. I smirk as Clove dances her way over to the radio. I prepare myself to hear a ruckus. But, it never comes. Instead, I hear the sound of a nice beat. I'm not familiar with the song, but I like it.

"So, what we do now, is figure out the ingredients for the explosion," she explains, looking over my shoulder to read from the book. Out loud, she reads, "Baking soda, a lot of it. And red food coloring. Wow, that sounds easy."

"I still don't know why they would explain how to make explosive bread in a cookbook. That can cause serious damage, " I say, pondering about the reasons people would have to give people like Clove and me information like this.

"No, Katniss," she persists. "You're wrong. _We _cause serious damage," she smiles, evilly.

I smile and ask, "So, what do we do now?"

"We," she starts, pausing for dramatic effect, "make some explosive breads!"

We get to work as the music plays loudly. Silvia isn't home yet, and I'm glad she isn't. Flour flies through the air, finally landing on my head. Clove covers her mouth, and starts to muffle her laughter. I roll my eyes and start chasing her around the kitchen. She threw flour in the air, so she's the one to blame. After chasing her for ten minutes, we start to dance as she adds the large amount of baking soda. It appears that when you have a lot of baking soda, and a specific type of food coloring, you make a huge explosion. I laugh when Clove trips over the spilled food coloring. She gets up from the floor, only to trip once more.

After two hours of baking and getting flour in my hair, we finish. The bread looks undercooked and nasty. I thank Clove for that reason. I walk over to the counter where we let the ten pieces of small bread lie on a pan. Clove looks at me, excitedly. I roll my eyes and laugh as I say, "Okay, now, we pour the red food coloring on the bread, wait for it to reach the center of it, and then…KABOOM!" She laughs, getting a small cup of red food coloring.

"Alright," she says, super elatedly, "here it goes." She pours some of it on one piece of bread. We wait, and after about ten seconds of waiting, we hear the loud sound of a pop and pieces of burned bread fly all over the place. Clove screams at first, then she starts to laugh. I laugh loudly as I pour some red food coloring onto another piece of bread. I hand it to Clove, quickly, and it explodes right in her hands, sending a piece of burnt bread at her face. She screams and laughs.

She picks up a huge cup of food coloring and pours it all over the breads. "This is war, Katniss Everdeen!" She yells, throwing a bread at me, as it explodes in my face. I laugh and pick a bread up, but it explodes before I can throw it. An hour goes by, with us throwing bread that explodes everywhere, filling the kitchen with the smell of burnt bread and pieces of bread flying against the walls, sticking to the walls.

Clove yells, "Surrender?"

"No way, Clove!" I yell, over the sound of music and exploding breads. More batches of bread are put on the table after six minutes. We pour food coloring on it, and start the war all over again. It's 1:00am, Silvia isn't back yet, and we don't plan on going to sleep any sooner. The music plays loudly as we mess around with the bread. Each time we bake new ones, we add even more baking soda then we should. We make the pieces of bread larger and larger each time. Clove is about to pour some on a huge one. But, before she can, I shove a small piece of bread down her back, and it explodes on her back, causing a hole to form in her shirt.

She screams as I start laughing. "Katniss! YOU'RE DEAD!"

I run around the kitchen, occasionally grabbing pieces of bread and throwing them. That's when I hit someone in the face that I didn't remember was here in the first place. Peeta. He's angry…and he looks tired. _Oops, _I think to myself. He looks around the kitchen in shock. He looks down at the mess I am, covered in flour and pieces of bread. He looks at Clove, his jaw almost dropping. He shakes his head.

"Oh…my…god," he whispers. He starts to laugh after seconds of staring around the kitchen. "Wait until Silvia sees this."


	19. The Closet's Curiosity

**The Closet's Curiosity- Short Chapter**

Laughter springs around the room, making the kitchen even more nerve-racking. I look around the kitchen once more, a mess. Clove seems to take it as a joke, but Silvia is over emotional, and she might just start crying because of the mess. I ask myself why exactly she gets home so late, or early, in the morning. Turning to look at the clock, which reads 4:04am, my heart literally stops. Silvia, in thirty minutes, will be in this room, having a fit that includes either crying or yelling. I shake my head as I look around what a mess we've made. This is exactly why Clove and I, in one room, do not mix well. My eyes widen as dozens of other breads start to detonate. Clove holds in the laughter that isn't audible, but it's clearly visible in her face.

Of course Clove wouldn't care if Silvia came home and saw what we have done. Unlike my mother, Silvia will not get revenge on us, she'll _kill _us, especially because she gets home exhausted. Peeta, on the other hand, starts to let out his laughter. My eyes meet his as he laughs and shakes his head. My eyes strain themselves on him. The glare on my face is enough to make him stop laughing, but not enough to shut him up.

"Might want to clean that up," he jokes, running a hand through his hair.

"No really," Clove snaps, sarcastically, as she moves away from a bread that is seconds away from exploding. "Katniss, we have exactly twenty-four minutes left to clean this up," she explains, completely peaceful.

I turn to Peeta, ready to pour my heart out so he could help us. But before I can just mutter a word, he mumbles, "I'll help you." Immediately, a smile forms on my face. He smirks and mouths, _You owe me._ I sigh and nod my head.

Peeta and I start to walk towards a closet as Clove starts to scrape off the burned pieces of bread stuck onto the wall with a spoon. She hums loudly, causing her humming to follow us all the way to the closet. Peeta grabs some mops and other appliances while I start to hum the same catchy tune Clove was humming. Peeta hands me a mop as he says, "Please stop the humming, you two are going to drive me crazy," he begs, a little humor in his voice.

"Don't I do that every day?" I raise an eyebrow, smiling.

He smirks. "Yeah, you do. Just not in that way, " he says, winking at me. I can already feel my cheeks heat up.

I move deeper into the strangely large closet. You could fit about ten people here. I look around as what I'm doing because a blur. I travel deep into my thoughts as I move next to Peeta, who is picking up more stuff. I can hear Clove's footsteps get closer as her big mouth shouts for us to hurry up. Her footsteps stop as she shouts, in the doorway, "Katniss, Peeta, let's go! We only have like fifteen more minute!" She grabs the things we have already gotten and walks back to the kitchen. I close the door of the closet slowly, and "accidentally". Peeta hasn't noticed yet, mainly because of his mumbling and constant insults to the imaginary Clove. I move towards him, feeling stranger and stranger as I do. I bite my lip as he turns around, finally noticing the closed closet door.

Just then, I hear laughter, Clove's laughter. Then I hear the _click! _from the closet door. My eyes widen as I turn around to look at the door knob, to realize that Clove has locked us in the closet. Peeta rushes towards the door and tries to open it, but after constant yelling and slamming his fists at the door, he gives up.

Peeta mumbles a curse word under his breath, making me grin. This might not all be so bad. He looks up at me as he leans on one of the walls in the closet. The strong arms of his make me move closer to him. His blue eyes shine in the dimness of the closet. It was as if a little child had just ran downstairs to find a decorated tree with ornaments on it and presents under it on Christmas morning. The thought only made my grin even wider. Peeta raises an eyebrow while the corners of his mouth curve, forming a mocking smile. His hands go around my waist as he slowly moves me against the wall of the closet. My eyes never leave his. He kicks a bottle of a whatever substance away and I can feel the wall be pressed on my back. His body is extremely close to mine, I can feel his flat and muscular stomach on mine. He smirks as I wrap my arms around his neck, trying to get his lips closer to mine. When he finally stops mocking me, he leans down and kisses my lips, hungrily. I wrap my legs around his waist.

It feels strange. I've never been this close to Peeta, and it scares me a bit that the urge to be this close to him was so strong. Everything about him makes me do things I wouldn't have done before. My brain makes me think about things in a way any mature adult would, but my heart…my heart wants to be daring and experience things I wouldn't want to before I saw Peeta. My heart dares me to get close to him. His lips meet mine repeatedly, each time with more passion, more roughly. His lips travel down my neck as I run my hands through his hair. One of his hands go under one of my legs, as he moves his hand up from my leg to my hips.

I'm back on my feet as both of his hands go under my shirt, traveling up my chest. Slowly, he's about to remove my shirt when I hear screaming. Silvia. Peeta and I stop, our bodies still close to each other's. He looks at me and then focuses his hearing far behind the closet door and into the kitchen. His breathing is steady, while mine is about to start a race at 500 miles per hour. I whisper his name, frantically. He shushes me by putting a finger on my lips. When focusing my hearing, I can hear everything that is going on.

"Clove, what happened here!" Silvia screams, her voice cracking as if she's about to cry. She _is _going to cry.

"Katniss and I tried to make dinner because apparently girls need to eat!" Clove screams back, fake sadness creeping along in her voice. I feel hope light in me. Clove is a good liar, and knowing her mom, Silvia will surely be sad and start apologizing to her because she wasn't there to cook for us. But it also makes me feel guilty. All this lying is going to come back to me and bite me in the ass. I just have to move around it. And personally, we _were _trying to make dinner, just adding a bit of our own flavor, _explosive_ flavor.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, sweetie," Silvia starts, sounding guilty and sorrowful. "You know I can't change the fact that I come home very late, but, I will help you clean this up," I can just feel her smiling sympathetically.

"Okay, mom," Clove says, sounding like a five year-old.

"Where's Katniss?" Silvia asks, sounding a bit more suspicious and recovered from her sympathy. "She's here, right?"

If I were Clove, I would be very well losing all hope. Silvia, with a snap of her fingers, can send me home quickly, even if my father wouldn't want me to go without finishing this semester in school. But, Clove answers nicely and as calmly as possible. I'm glad that she's that brave. But, what she said made my heart stop, this time for real. Peeta has to hold me up of I would have fallen right to the floor.

"She's in the closet," Clove says, making sure I heard that. "She's looking for something to clean this kitchen up. But, she probably gave up and went upstairs. If you need her, she's in her room, I think."

I can hear Silvia reply as her heels make a ruckus as she goes upstairs. Immediately, when her heels are out of the reach of my ears, I hear Clove's squeaking shoes get closer and closer to the closet door. She opens the door rapidly and replies, "Leave now, Peeta, if you want to live." Her eyes are wide, her voice showing true frantic, and she's losing her breath. Peeta kisses me one last time before rushing out the door, but before he can leave, shutting it softly and soundless, we hear her footsteps as she yells for Clove. Peeta's eyes widen as I push him into the closet again, urgently. Clove and I rush out of the closet right when Silvia gets downstairs.

"Oh, well, there you are Katniss," she says, smiling and laughing softly behind it. "What were you doing in the closet?" Her smile is angry. Something about the way her eyes glow tell me she knows exactly what I was doing in that closet.

It takes me a moment to find my voice. Clove nudges me as I begin my _huge _reason why I was in the closet. "Well, you know, Clove and I were hungry and decided to make some dinner, and as you can see by the kitchen, we failed miserably. So, I was looking for…stuff…to clean the kitchen with," I smile, sighing in relief that my voice managed to stay in cover.

Silvia looks at me, her eyes squinting as if she's trying to figure me out. She moves closer to me, every step she takes, I wish I could take one back. I can just feel Clove's uneasiness, making me afraid because she's usually never this scared and nervous either. But Silvia, especially with the order her house is in, is very strict. She might have told me she'd let me see Peeta, but it was just so I'd do good in what really matters to her, school. If she knew I was with Peeta in that closet, she'd kill me and then make Clove watch. The thought only brings more fear into me.

"Oh really, Katniss?" She asks, suddenly angry. "I can just smell him on you. He was here, wasn't he? Or is he _still _here?"

My heart beats faster every second as Clove saves me. "No he wasn't, mom. Well, he _was _here," Clove says, neutrally. I turn to look at her because I don't see where she's going with this until she says, "Like hours ago, mom."

I thank Clove for her braveness. I look at Silvia in her eyes, somehow regaining my strength to nod at her. Silvia returns to her cheerful self and replies, "Alright, Katniss and Clove, he's in the closet, isn't he?" She turns to the closet door, smiling. "Katniss, I don't care. I can very well tell what you two were doing in there." She seems as if she wasn't mad. Maybe she _isn't _mad.

Silvia walks towards the closet door to reveal Peeta, leaving against the wall. Silvia gives him a look as he puts his hands up in defense. "We weren't doing anything. Clove locked us in," he says, humor in his voice, as he turns the argument back at Clove.

Clove gasps and says, "Well, Katniss is the one who shut the door. Obviously, she wanted to be alone with you!" Clove laughs as everyone turns to me. I glare at her for seconds until I find myself arguing also.

"Maybe I did do that, but it's your fault for having a cook book that explains how to make explosive bread!" I turn the argument around at Silvia. Everyone turns to her, including me.

Silvia laughs. "That's what you girls were making? Explosive bread? You have to be kidding me. Don't try stuff like that! You could have killed someone!" Her laughter is dangerously fading away, now turning back to Peeta and I. "I hope you guys didn't do anything in there you might regret because you know, Katniss, what your mother says…," I can't stand one more word so I interrupt her.

"I know! We didn't do anything!" I shout, my cheeks feeling like they're burning.

I glance at Peeta, who smirks. My embarrassment was fading away until Clove says, "Well, it didn't look like nothing when I found you two."

Silvia laughs once more. After a few more minutes of arguing, Peeta leaves and Silvia goes upstairs, ready to sleep, leaving me downstairs with Clove. I glare at Clove and punch her arm as she laughs. "Seriously, Clove? I'm going to kill you!"

She backs away, still laughing. "C'mon, Katniss. It was funny. You know what you were doing in that closet."

"Well, it surely didn't sound funny to me! You embarrassed me!" I snap at her.

She shrugs, "It's your curiosity, Katniss. Don't lie, you wanted to, didn't you?" She teases me.

I roll my eyes. "No, I didn't," it surprises me how it sounded so much like I was lying. I wasn't lying. I sigh and realize what it really means.

It was definitely my curiosity.

**Short chapter, sorry. Needed to update already. =-) **


	20. Shut Up

**Shut Up- ****Very important, so read. I'm making this story 30 chapters long. So there are ten more chapters. Don't worry. I'm already thinking up of a sequel. **

I crept, silently, painstakingly, and with a lot of admiration for the good work I've done at not making noise on this creaky, wooden floor. Clove is a light sleeper, but that won't keep me from getting revenge. If only Peeta were here. I would have given him a heart attack, but that's the fixation, _Clove _is going to have a heart attack. She had a part in that little prank of hers with Peeta. And all I could think of, is to get up at the earliest time possible, a time when Silvia would be in her deep sleep, or as she calls it, her "beauty" sleep.

It's three in the morning right now, and I went to sleep extremely early for this occasion. Despite the numerous amounts of things in my hands right now, I move along the strangely long hallway. At the speed I'm going, I'd get there by noon. Never did I imagine myself creeping at a pace like this. Clove deserves it, and I'm going to suffer through anything to get her. Not only am I suffering because I'm very impatient, but I'm slightly angry at Clove. She embarrassed me and it's not going to go unforgiving.

Maybe I'm making a big deal about it, and it's clear to me that I am. Yet there's something about getting Clove back that brings me to a conclusion. And I must get revenge. It's very simple. Clove will wake up feeling extremely sticking. Honey is in my left hand while toilet paper is in the other. Apart from that, I have feathers in a bag also in my right hand. The darkness in the hallway causes me to move slowly, very slowly. As impatient as I am, I rush the rest of the way. It could have taken me hours just to get to Clove's door.

I wrap the toilet paper everywhere. Around her bed, on the walls, on her dresser, and spread honey all over it too. She's going to hate me for this, and what's even worse, she'll try to get me back. I'll have to be in full alert each time around her. Even when I'm _not _around her. It's childish, really. But, I don't really care. It's a matter of getting revenge. Though I know it isn't wise to do what I'm doing now, I just don't simply care. Silvia will yell at me, make me clean the mess, but I don't care.

But that's not Clove. She won't wake up screaming and call for Silvia. She'll know it was me. I mean, who else will there be to do this? She'll get back at me, in the worse way possible. I'm not afraid of Clove, but I'm sure going to regret this because she'll get me back…hard. It's just a matter of time.

My eyes flutter open as the sound of Clove's footsteps getting closer to my door hits my ears. I prepare myself for some yelling and threatening. But when she comes in, her hair is wet as if she had already cleaned the honey out. She's angry, very angry. Her eyes glow with something similar to fire. Hands in fists, she says, "Katniss, this is war."

I look up at her from my pillow. I shrug as if I don't care. "Okay, whatever, Clove."

She folds her arms and warns, "Just be careful, Katniss." With that, she smiles politely and leaves out the door. I can already feel myself tense up.

Not only is she crazy, but she's crazy with danger. She won't kill me, but she'll do somewhat close to it. I groan and get up from my bed. Once I step on that floor, I feel something wet and sticking under my feet. My eyes widen to find honey on the floor. Anger grows in me quickly as I yell, "CLOVE!"

…

"That was funny, wasn't it?" I ask her angrily as she laughs. The honey is off my feet as we head out the door. We're supposed to go to Peeta's lacrosse game today. I promised him I'd go, and I'm not breaking that promise. I haven't seen Peeta play a game lately. Clove agreed to go with me because she doesn't have anything else to do. I wish she hadn't gone with me because she's starting to annoy me. On the way, she starts talking about prom.

"You do know Prom is just three weeks away?" She asks, looking up at me. All I can think of is how in that little, sick mind of hers, she's planning something, revenge.

"No, I didn't. I'm not interested. I don't even want to go," I say, and what surprises me is that it sounded like such a lie.

She shakes her head. "No, Katniss. Peeta's going to ask you-u-u!"

I cross the street, getting ahead of her, just so she can catch up to me again. I sigh. "Clove, I know he is. I just don't feel like going."

She raises an eyebrow and replies, "Katniss, you know how much of a lie that sounds coming out of your mouth? Don't you know Peeta's going to want to go? And it's not that bad anyway. You'll have fun." She ends it encouragingly. I stare at her for a second until I look away, my eyebrows rising as I sigh once more. She practically yells at me, "Katniss, c'mon! You might even get lucky in the night," she ends teasingly.

I don't get it until she starts to laugh and whispers the word "bed". I punch her in the arm, and with all honesty, I wanted that punch to make contact with her jaw. But I just couldn't bring myself to do so because she's….my cousin. And I wouldn't hurt her like that.

"Clove, you're pathetic. I'm not even thinking about that," I exclaim, defensively.

"Yeah, right. These past couple of days, you couldn't keep your hands off him," she laughs. "And the funny part was that you guys almost did it in a closet if it weren't for Silvia." Her laughter dies down as she says, "And to think that your mother tells you not to do it, it's just like giving you the permission to."

"Why do you call your mother Silvia? Aren't you supposed to call her 'mother'?" I try changing the subject, but she brings it right up, quickly bashing off the question.

"That's my business. Anyways, I'm right, you're wrong," she persists.

"Shut up, Clove. You're nowhere near right," I deny. I'm not in denial. It isn't true. I wasn't intending for the closet incident to go down that way. Clove keeps bothering with it, and the more mother brings it up, Silvia brings it up, and Clove brings it up, it gets me thinking even more. What really sets me off is Clove's teasing and she doesn't give up until the thought of what she's constantly saying gets to me, and I find myself noticing that it's true. All the time, it's every time. She needs to bring it up, and it just makes me furious at her every single time she does.

The closet incident was just me…being curious and pathetic. Now that I realize I did want it to go that far, I'm furious at Clove. I can tell she sees it and smirks. Completely ignoring her, I walk along the way to the game.

When we get to the game, Clove goes to sit next to Haley, who I haven't seen in a while. Once Cloves sits down, Dez sits next to her, causing Clove to blush. I smile to myself as I feel arms wrap around my waist from behind. I smile as I turn around. He kisses me lovingly and then he says, "You came."

I look into his eyes. "I wouldn't miss it. I want to see my boyfriend kick some ass," I say, kissing him again, softly. I wrap my arms around his neck as his hands fall onto my hips.

He laughs as his coach calls for him. He kisses me one more time. He's about to go when I pull him back for another kiss. He laughs and says, "C'mon, babe. I need to go."

I pout, playfully. "Okay, but you owe me more kisses," I state, as he places another kiss on my lips. "Good luck."

He smiles, "Thank you."

The game starts off with the opposing team scoring five points in a row. I can see Peeta's frustrated look on his face. He hasn't joined the game yet. They're too busy making other teammates play. The other team has already scored ten points and home nothing when they ask Peeta to join.

Clove nudges me in the stomach once he starts playing. I scowl at her as I sign to leave me alone. I'm rather focused on the game. No one can get Peeta down, in the first three minutes, he scores five points for his team. He moves quickly. I'm watching him closely the entire time. I never really was interested in watching sports live. But I guess this is different in a way.

I'm jumping off the bleachers to and onto the field. Clove is screaming and cheering a long with Dez and Haley. They won. Peeta's team won! I run into the field and into his arms. Clove and Haley rush down the field celebrating as Dez laughs and joins them. I wrap my arms around his neck as he wraps his arms around my waist.

"You were amazing!" I exclaim, kissing him repeatedly. He smiles and kisses me back. I find myself wanting him to kiss me again. Clove's words are getting to me, and I can't block them out. When I get home, my first attempt to strangle Clove begins. She's like a cat and nine lives. Knowing she won't die, I'll need to do it nine times to make sure she does perish.

…

"Hey, you know what we should do?" Dez came along with us, and he seems a bit crazy, just like Clove. No wonder Clove likes him, he's exactly like her.

"We're not doing that," Peeta warns, suddenly angry at Dez. We've been sitting on my couch, not being able to do anything because we can't think of anything. It's as if being bored is considered "torture" to us. But then again, it might.

"Do what?" The last time I was to dim-witted to ask questions, Peeta, after Amber became somewhat friends with us, he was flirting with her back in the kitchen. He was angry at the party I remember crashing with Glimmer and Demeter. I miss them, and there's nothing that can change it.

"We should," he says, pausing for dramatic effect, "practice our dancing." He laughs to himself, leaving me with a thought implanted in my mind. He might be crazy.

Clove doesn't seem to get it. And I'm sure I don't either. I don't appreciate being the last to know things, and Peeta has done that quite a few times, and I just never realized it because I was fogged by my love for him. But now that Clove has pointed out how I wanted to _do it _with Peeta, has gotten be rather a bit paranoid, and it's making me furious by the second. I could only laugh at the anger that was building in me. It wouldn't make sense to the rest of them if I would have just burst with anger at each one of them for an unreasonable reason. But, it's not unreasonable to me because Clove has the entire fault in the way I'm feeling.

"Seriously, Dez?" I laugh, but Peeta seems to realize the anger in me, but I try to extinguish the flames in my eyes that are fogging up my vision along with anger.

"Well, Prom is near and so is that talent show you need to appear in, Katniss. And I don't mean to be rude, but you need help dancing," he teases. I could have sworn to myself that at that moment I could have exploded.

I bring myself to a stop. I don't want to get angry, but it just feels as if it was boiling to the top quicker every second. The anger now is now unreasonable to me. I don't understand why I'm so mad right now. What Clove has said as me furious, but at this type of teasing, I wouldn't get any angrier. Clove's words still bother me. And I'm angry at her, and no one else. It's as if I could just snap even at Prim today. That is how much words nail themselves in my brain.

"I don't care," I reply, with low enthusiasm. I grab the remote from the coffee table, turn the TV on, and focus all my attention and unreasonable anger at it as well.

Clove stares at the TV, drooling. It's hilarious the way her mind gets sucked right into the TV and all her surroundings become nothing to her. The fact that Dez is laughing at her along with Peeta doesn't hit her just proves me right. I glance at them and return my attention to the TV. Haley sits on the floor and her legs stretch out before her. She turns her head to look at me, her expression filled with suspicion. I frown as I feel her eyes still on me. Out of everything about me that I like to keep confined to myself, having people stare at me is one of the most uncomfortable things ever, and everyone knows that about me.

I sigh and look down at her. "What?" I spit at her, regretting it right after.

She shakes her head, shamefully, leaving me with suspicion. It is little things like this that make me angry. I growl and look at the TV. Peeta starts a conversation with Dez, laughing constantly as they watch the TV. Clove and Haley are making fun of the actors while I sit here, every second clouding my mind even more. I can only think of how I miss Glimmer and Demeter. Suddenly, Prim comes to the thought. I sigh and play with my fingers.

I watch the TV after twenty minutes. Clove is irritated because her boredom has grown too much for her to control. Her face brightens as she babbles on about her ideas. I turn to look at Dez watching her, controlling his laughter. What must he find in her? Clove isn't unattractive, but she sure does get on my nerves. But, she's the best cousin I could ever have, and even though she teases me often, I still love her because there's something about her that always drags me to her. Maybe it's the reason that she can make me laugh constantly. I smile as she talks about the explosive bread confidently to Dez.

It's the same with Glimmer and Demeter. They might seem like very annoying and pushy girls. But the reason that I can always have fun with them and still be myself is what makes them my best friends. They might push me to do things I don't want to, but they know what's wrong from right, and they wouldn't pressure me into doing things they know will hurt me. Just for the fact that I'm being myself around them, and they _still _hang out with me makes them my best friends. The things they push me into don't hurt me, though they do bother me, but it always finds a way into making me laugh or have fun. Before I met them, I wasn't a very fun and polite person. I'm still not very polite now, but I definitely don't mind having fun now. There are many reasons why I love those two girls, and I could name all of them as if they were written on my palm permanently.

"You know what; we should go to…to…to the park!" She exclaims, as if she were a little kid. I roll my eyes and watch the TV as the rest of them agree. I can't believe they are. They get up and suddenly, the TV gets turned off.

"Peeta, turn it back on!" I yell at him, angry.

He smiles and replies, "No, now let's go to the park."

I sigh, "I don't want to."

"Yeah, you do," he persists.

"No, I don't," I snap, grabbing the remote and turning the TV on again.

"Yes, yes you do," he turns off the TV by hitting the button on it.

I glare at him and yell, "NO, NO I DON'T!"

He stares at me, a bit worried and hurt. I sigh, ready to apologize when he walks over and sits next to me. "What's wrong?" He doesn't sound at all convinced that there isn't anything wrong with me. I don't want to explain to him why, it'd make me feel even more awkward around him. Even that he's this close to me on the couch, makes me want to back away. _Darn you, Clove. _

Trying my best to lie, I say, "I'm tired."

He laughs. I turn to look at him, prepared to glare, but when meeting those eyes, it's as if my heart is refusing to glare or show any sign of anger at them. "No, that's not what it is. And you don't want to tell me."

"That's not true," I lie. I'm starting to feel guilty. Very guilty.

"Okay," he says, still unconvinced. "Let's go to the park, it'd be fun," he begs.

I sigh. "Fine."

. . .

"Wow, this place amazing in the night!" Haley and Clove say, simultaneously.

"It's as if you've never left your house in years, Clove," Dez says.

"No, maybe it is that I admire things a bit more than others. And I show more enthusiasm too," Clove says, defensively.

They go off to their little world, talking about whatever it is that interests them. Peeta and I walk off on our own. The park is lighted up beautifully. I'm suddenly seeing New York. I remember when Peeta and I skipped school and he drove me through New York City. I smile at the memory. The trees are so tall, they might touch the clouds and out our atmosphere. I breathe in the fresh air. Somehow, it makes me feel as if I was back home, and feeling back at home seems like the only thing to bring me peace.

We're sitting on a bench, just like the first time we kissed. My heart beats fast as I look down at our entwined fingers. It reminds me so much about it, that I can't believe it. It's almost the same, no, it _is _the same. I find myself longing to go home. I want to be in New York again, running through the hallways that belong to Paradise High with Glimmer and Demeter, being chased by teachers, and causing as much destruction as possible. Even more, I want to be near my little sister again. I miss Prim more than ever. I miss mother too. There are so many things I miss about home, and as I look at Peeta's face, he seems to be thinking and feeling the same way.

He chuckles suddenly. "Isn't it weird? This seems so familiar."

I smile. "Yeah, it does," I say, looking up at him into his eyes. He smiles as I lay my head on his shoulder.

We're sitting in silence, watching Clove, Haley, and Dez fool around chasing each other. I laugh as Dez trips and falls to the grass trying to catch Clove. Peeta's quiet, his expression showing that he's lost in his thoughts. I don't want to interrupt him, so I just stay there, afraid to break the silence. I close my eyes and think. I think until I find myself drifting off to sleep.

…

I wake up, hearing familiar voices downstairs. My eyes fly open. I feel the biggest grin cross my face. I jump off the bed and run downstairs. I see them. My heart is racing and I cannot even believe it. It must be summer vacation already in New York. It isn't a surprise that they'd come. But I can't help but scream and run to them. Clove, who was standing next to them, gets crushed also in my bear hug. I laugh and I almost cry as they say, "Well, Katniss, looks like we have Momma Bear here!"

"Shut up, Glimmer," I say, just like I always did when she'd tease me.

"Seriously, you're crushing us," says the other one.

"I said, shut up, Demeter," I smile to myself as I hear her gasp dramatically.

"Katniss, I'm also being crushed here," Clove says, squirming and trying to get out of my long and crushing embrace.

"For the last time, shut up."


	21. Summer

I've got Bad news. Only six more chapters going up because I can't make it longer, due to a huge writer's block and because the plot I've come up with ends too soon to be fitted into 30 chapters. But, the good news is that these last chapters will be happy chapters. ;-)

**Summer**

It's midnight. Silvia is gone, and I can guarantee you it's going to be another night of fooling around, especially because Gale and Cato are here along with Demeter and Glimmer. It wasn't a surprise to me that they'd be here. Just like spring break, they flew here together. What did surprise me is that Cato and Demeter are finally together. So are Glimmer and Gale. Doesn't surprise me that much, but still, you could see it coming, and yet, you might have had your doubts about them _actually _being together.

Peeta lies on the couch with his head on my lap as I play with his hair. Cato and Demeter are lying on the floor, watching Paranormal Activity 3 carefully. Glimmer and Gale sit close to each other on one of the love seats, watching the movie with amusement. Clove and Dez sit sloppily on the living chairs. I can't believe they're not together yet, and I can just tell how much it bothers Clove way more than it bothers me to see her so upset. Haley's on her phone, as usual. All I can think of is how bad I want to sleep.

While the movie plays, I start to doze off. Peeta gets off my lap and sits up. He pulls me close to him as I lay my head on his shoulder, closing my eyes and dozing off again. He wraps his arms around me and watches the movie. For a minute, I actually feel comfortable when Glimmer screams from the movie. My eyes flutter open with panic, but it reduces once everyone starts to laugh at Glimmer. I roll my eyes and before I can close my eyes, Peeta asks, "Baby, you should go upstairs and sleep."

I shake my head and move closer to him. "I don't want to sleep without you," I complain, burying my face into his neck. I'm acting so weak and small. I don't care at this point, I just want to sleep, but not without Peeta. Soon, I feel strong arms carry me up from the couch. I'm half asleep when I feel my soft bed. He covers me in a soft blanket. Lying next to me, he wraps his arms around me. Immediately, I move close to him, resting my head on his chest.

Stroking my hair, he kisses me softly on the lips. Moving the closest I can to him, I press my lips against his again, repeatedly. He puts one of his hands on my hips while I bite his bottom lip softly. He chuckles and pulls away. "What was that?"

I smile and reply, "Something," pulling his lips back to mine. I can feel him smile while we kiss. I run my hands through his hair as he rolls on top of me, not putting all his weight on me. He slowly lifts my shirt up, removing it. I run my hands under his shirt, feeling his muscular, hard stomach. I remove his shirt as he kisses down my neck, then my torso, and then he starts kissing me behind my ear. I bite my lip as his hands move down from my hips to the button on my jeans. I can't explain what I'm feeling. It just feels like…fire. Those kisses of his send fire engulfing my body. What Clove had said is now completely true. I understand what I want. I _really _want Peeta. Part of me feels guilty. What mother had said fills me with regret. Suddenly, I want it to stop, but another feeling is so much more overpowering. Clove's words run through my head, and it's no doubt that she's right.

"I thought you were tired," he says, between kisses.

"Not anymore," I reply, quickly. He slowly unbuttons my jeans as I kiss him like crazy. My lips don't pull away from his not even a second. As he pulls my pants down, I run my hands through his soft hair. My pants are off completely, and it causes redness on my cheeks to show. I don't really care, and I've said that many times, but this time I really mean it. Nothing seems to matter to me now. I find myself unbuttoning his pants, leading my heart in a race. I'm breathless, but I don't let it stop me. Once his pants are off, I kiss his neck while he goes for my bra. Before he can even get it off, I hear the annoying screaming that seems to interrupt us every single time.

"Katniss!" Clove yells. "Katniss, you'd not believe this," she exclaims as she bursts through the door, revealing Peeta and I half naked. "Oops, sorry guys," she winks at me and closes the door. I roll my eyes as Peeta gets off me.

"I'm going to kill her," I mutter under my breath. "That screaming has to stop one way or another," I say as I throw my shirt back on. Peeta's arms wrap around my waist from behind. He kisses my neck and whispers in my ear.

"We'll finish this later," he whispers, moving his hands from my waist to my butt. I wiggle my hips to get his hands off my butt as he laughs.

I jump out of his arms and shout, "Hands off the ass!"

He puts his shirt back on and says, "What can I say? It's a nice ass."

Then the screaming and laughing erupts through the house. Peeta and I glance at each other. Demeter and Glimmer burst through the room. Before they can see me, I hide behind Peeta because I'm only in my underwear. Clove and Haley follow after them. They're all screaming like little girls. It makes me laugh when I hear Gale and Cato scream like girls too.

"What the hell?" Peeta asks, asking the same question that was going on in my head.

"I swear there's a ghost in this house," Glimmer squeaks, moving closer to Gale. The stupidity in the statement doesn't even cause me to laugh. It's so ridiculous it isn't even laughable. Peeta just stares at his friends in disbelief. Out of all of us here, I would have thought Gale and Cato would be the ones to prove us wrong, and by us, I mean Glimmer and the rest of the girls besides me. I don't believe in ghosts, and I knew that after watching this movie, they'd come up with something as idiotic as this.

"Seriously?" It's all I can manage to say. Peeta glances at me, annoyed. I nod my head in agreement and turn my attention to our laughing friends.

"We were watching Paranormal Activity 3, and then the lights shot off by themselves," Clove explains. "Then Dez decided to leave because he couldn't stand our stupidity, at least that's what he said," she continues, sadly.

Gale rolls his eyes and says, "And then it started raining," in a scary tone just like they do in movies. Sure enough it made me laugh, but Peeta looks nothing but annoyed. I'm still wearing my shirt and underwear, and hiding behind Peeta is the best I could do, but it isn't enough because Gale looks over and smirks. "Oh, you guys were in the middle of something?"

Clove joins him and says, "I interrupted them for the eighth time they've been here. Today was the ninth."

"And it will be your last ever," I threaten her, about to launch myself at her until Peeta pulls me back behind him, giving me a look that reminds me what I'm wearing. Glimmer and Demeter smirk and shake their heads, leaving the room. The rest follow, finally leaving Peeta and me alone. I groan. "I hate being interrupted," I say, wrapping my arms around Peeta's neck.

He grins. "I told you we'd finish this later," he says as he pecks my lips.

"Well, I think it's later already," I persist. He chuckles and I press my lips onto his. We lay back down on the bed, and this time I really am tired. There's silence as we both stare at the ceiling, lost in our own thoughts. I rest my head on Peeta's chest, his chest rising and falling. I remember what father had told me, about going back to New York for my senior year. I haven't told anyone since. What do I want? Part of me wants to go home, but I've grown so attached to California, and I've loved it here. But New York is my home, and I miss is a great deal. Where's Peeta going for his senior year? Will he go back to New York with me? It's all too much for me to think of, and if I think about it more, it'd be irritating and hard to get rid of, so it's best for me to stop thinking about it and break this suddenly uncomfortable silence.

"So, tomorrow's the last week of school. Are you going to that cruise trip?" I ask him, looking up at him into those blue orbs of his. There's been this cruise trip our school is having. It consists of graduating seniors and other students who are willing to go. I don't want to go, but I guess it'd be fun. If Peeta goes, then I'd probably too. I'm just not looking forward to spending my summer vacation doing nothing.

"No, I probably won't. I get sea sick easily," he says. "But if you do want to go, count me in," he smiles.

I shake my head. "No, I don't want to go." _Tell him about New York, tell him. _"Peeta?"

He looks down at me with loving eyes. "Yeah?"

"My father, a little while ago, told me about starting senior year in New York," I say, looking at him carefully. He turns to look at me, his face showing no emotion. Is he mad I hadn't told him earlier? I don't know. All I can think of is how unwise it was of me not to tell him earlier. He might be angry at me, and he does have a right to be, too.

"That's great," he smiles. I look at him straight into the eyes, and then he says, "It's strange because my father said the same thing back at the hospital."

I smile, widely. It makes him chuckle as I jump on top of him, covering his face in kisses.

…

"Oh, yeah, baby!" Clove screams, running out of the school with all of us behind her. Dez and Haley join the celebration while Peeta and I walk towards them. Amber and the rest of her friends wave at us before getting into a car. I've learned to accept their annoying and girlish ways because that's who they are, but it doesn't mean I have to like them. Glimmer and Demeter are waiting for us in a car while Gale and Cato run to Peeta, pinning him to the ground and fooling around. I shake my head and laugh as I make my way to the girls. Clove, Haley, and Dez are loud and bothersome. They bother the remaining students in the parking lot, and it only makes me laugh.

I get to the car, and Demeter says, "So, you're seriously not going to prom?"

"He didn't even ask you?" Glimmer asks.

"Well, Prom is only for seniors. I've been trying to tell you idiots that. Peeta knew that too," I explain, annoyed.

Glimmer and Demeter glance at each other. "Still no excuse!" They both yell in unison.

I roll my eyes as everyone gets into the car. I sit next to Clove and Peeta as Gale and Cato sit near the front. Glimmer is driving and Demeter sits in the passenger seat. Haley and Dez sit all the way in the back, the wind blowing everyone's hair back as the car moves. Glimmer's car as no roof so the wind just blows my hair back. The fresh air seems so good at the moment. It's even better when Peeta kisses my cheek. I turn my head to look at him and I smile.

"Wait; where in Hell are we going?" Clove yells over the wind.

"We're going to Amber's party! She invited us," Dez says, earning a glare from Clove.

I shake my head. "I don't see why you hate her so much, Clove."

"I don't hate her, Katniss. I just don't trust her," she snaps. "Plus, I was hoping we could go eat ice cream!"

Peeta laughs. "Yeah, ice cream could have been better," he says, sounding completely serious. It makes me think of that day when he was so mad at Amber.

I raise an eyebrow. "Oh yeah, why were you so mad at Amber back at that party we crashed?"

He glances at Gale who glances back at him. He sighs. "We'll talk about it later."

I don't bother to argue because I won't forget. Once we can talk about it, he's telling me. I won't forget. The rest of the ride to Amber's house is silent. What the hell went on at that party? I'm certain I won't like it. Just like I don't like most of the things I find out about last. The only sound hitting my ears is the wind, and luckily it stays that way until I get angry at the smallest things.

"Hey, Katniss," Clove begins, loudly, "did you know prom was only for seniors?"

I glare at her. "No shit, Sherlock."

It causes everyone to laugh. Clove looks hurt and looks down. "Don't put your panties in a twist. But I bet Peeta has for you," she teases, her eyes glowing with revenge. My eyes shoot her piercing looks that could kill. I can feel the anger start to boil in me. Gale and Cato laugh as Demeter and Glimmer start talking about things I wish they hadn't. Peeta puts his arm over my shoulder, trying to calm me down as Clove snickers.

"Hey, Kat, you know what?" Glimmer is driving up to a drive way. I look at her from the rear mirror. "We're here. Now, you can let that anger go because we're going to have a blast," she gushes

The heat is insane. It's bothersome in a whole new level. It's something much more bothersome. There are so many people. People are dancing, yelling, and being plain stupid while the blaring music deafens me. I hold tight to Peeta's hand, hoping the smell of alcohol will not kill me. So this is how Amber celebrates summer break. Now I can see it from her point of view. And yet, I still hate it. Next thing I know, we're standing right in front of Amber. She smiles and is the first to hug Peeta. Peeta forces a small smile, but I can see it in his eyes. He's uncomfortable. Clove and Dez run off to somewhere, which I have no interest in. Haley grows annoyed quickly and storms off to the backyard. Gale, Glimmer, Demeter, and Cato run to the pool that is visible from inside like little kids. I roll my eyes and look at Peeta.

"Can you tell me now?" I say. Amber smiles again and runs off to her other friends. I hear Peeta sigh. What is it that has him to uncomfortable? It's not just him that is uncomfortable, it's me. It's starting to nag at me, and it's making me angrier by the second. We head upstairs to a balcony. I look up at him, waiting for him to start explaining.

"That day, I was furious at Amber and some other guy." He starts to explain. I know that, but I wait for him to continue. "Because the guy said something to me, and Amber…she…um…kissed me," he explains, nervously.

My eyes widen. I'm thinking of a million ways to murder her when I find myself calm. For some reason, it doesn't bother. Maybe it's the fact that I could have seen that coming. It happened before she actually became "a nice person". But still, it doesn't stop me from frowning. "What did that guy say to you?"

"He said he'd hurt you," he looks at me, staring at me with those blue eyes, adoring blue eyes. The look is on his face is so adorable that it just makes me snuggle up to him. I bury my face into his neck.

"No one could hurt me, Peeta, because you're here with me," I say into his neck.

"They're going to kill us," I laugh, lying on the hood of the car next to Peeta. We left the rest behind and drove up to a hill, overlooking the city. The hot night's air is the only uncomfortable thing of the night. Besides that, it's perfect. Many stars are out and shinning up in the sky. I lay my head on Peeta's chest as the car's radio plays '_Forever Young', One Direction _version. All I can do is think about how Clove would freak if she was here, listening to _One Direction_. She might get on my nerves, but she's still my cousin, a really good one though I don't tell her because I know she'll giver herself a little too much praise. Admiration for one's self? I don't see how that's possible, but fuck it; it's Clove we're talking about. Anything's possible.

I could already see myself in New York again. Prim is going to be so happy when I tell her. I can't wait to see her and mother. Then Clove comes to mind. Does she know? Never mind that, how am I going to tell her is more important. By important, I mean harder. I get to spend the rest of the summer here in California, so I have plenty of time to spend time with her. But I know Clove, and if I don't tell her sooner, she'll get angry at me.

"Which is better, vegetarians or cannibals?" Peeta asks, breaking my train of thoughts. I laugh my ass off as he shakes his head. "What?"

"What kind of question is that?" I ask, almost chocking as I laugh.

He chuckles. "Like you got anything better to talk about."

"I'm pretty sure there are millions of other things we could be talking about instead of cannibals and vegetarians," I reply, defensively.

"Oh, really, name one," he tests.

"Okay, what about nothing?" I say, dryly.

"You're very fun," he says, sarcastically.

I smile. "Vegetarians."

He smirks. "Cannibals."

I raise an eyebrow. "Really? Why?"

"You'll see." I giggle as his lips meet my neck. I have a feeling this will be an interesting summer.

Thanks for reading! Review


	22. Back In Time

**READ! IT'S VERY IMPORTANT AND IF YOU DON'T READ THIS, YOU'LL BE CURSED FOREVER, AND EVER…AND…EVER…AND EVER….NAH, I'M JOKING. BUT READ THIS PLEASE: **WOAH! Guys, I really want to reach at least 220 reviews before I finish this story off. If I do get 220 reviews, I'll post the sequel. PS. After this one, there are 5 more chapters left. THANK YOU FOR READING! No sad or depressing chapters left!

**Back In Time- I tried to be funny in this chapter. But I think I failed as fudge.**

"I love rock 'n' roll!" Glimmer sings along to it as the music plays in the house. She loves _Joan Jett_. And it's even more surprising that Amber's playing it in her house. We're sitting around the living room, seated somewhere together. I dance next to Glimmer and Demeter, rocking out to the song as it plays. Clove and Haley are playing a video game on the TV as we dance around. I pick up a remote and use it as a pretend microphone while we dance at Amber's sleepover.

_I saw him dancin' there by the record machine  
>I knew he must a been about seventeen<br>The beat was goin' strong  
>Playin' my favorite song<br>An' I could tell it wouldn't be long  
>Till he was with me, yeah me<br>And I could tell it wouldn't be long  
>Till he was with me, yeah me, singin' <em>

Amber's parents have left for a dinner party, leaving all of us girls with a warning. "No boys allowed." Of course we'd break that rule. Right away, Clove rang Dez and the other boys. Clove was upset I decided to ignore the talent show. I wasn't going to participate anyways, so I don't know why she put her hopes up exactly. But it didn't take a while for her to get over it. If she got upset for this, imagine telling her that I'm leaving to New York.

_I love rock n' roll  
>So put another dime in the jukebox, baby<br>I love rock n' roll  
>So come and take your time and dance with me<em>

_Ow!  
><em>The song was blaring by the time the guys got here. Amber was laughing her ass off as she danced on the coffee table. Clove had been jumping on the couch as Haley played yet another video game. The guys stand there, watching us somewhat amused.

"I'm going to get food," Dez yells over the music. The other guys nod in agreement, turning around and heading for the kitchen.

_He smiled so I got up and asked for his name  
>That don't matter, he said,<br>'Cause it's all the same_

_Said can I take you home where we can be alone_

_An' next we were movin' on  
>He was with me, yeah me <em>

Returning from the kitchen, the boys sit on a couch together, watching TV as if we never were dancing like wild animals around the room. Peeta glances at me from time to time as Clove and I throw pop corn at each other. That's just it; the boys have become good in ignoring us. Doesn't surprise me. I have a bit of admiration for them considering that we are a bit too hard to ignore, especially when loud music is playing.

_Next we were movin' on  
>He was with me, yeah me, singin'<br>I love rock n' roll  
>So put another dime in the jukebox, baby<br>I love rock n' roll  
>So come an' take your time an' dance with me<em>

_Ow!_

_Said can I take you home where we can be alone_

_Next we were movin' on  
>He was with me, yeah me,<br>An we'll be movin' on  
>An' singin' that same old song<br>Yeah with me, singin'_

_I love rock n' roll  
>So put another dime in the jukebox, baby<br>I love rock n' roll  
>So come an' take your time an' dance with me <em>

"Ha! That's hilarious," Cato says to himself as he watches TV. The guys have been sitting there as we finally sit down on the couch, the music still blaring.

_I love rock n' roll  
>So put another dime in the jukebox, baby<br>I love rock n' roll  
>So come an' take your time an' dance with<em>

_I love rock n' roll  
>So put another dime in the jukebox, baby<br>I love rock n' roll  
>So come an' take your time an' dance with <em>

"Wait, where was Godzilla filmed?" For the brains and intelligence Dez has, he doesn't ask very interesting questions.

_Nerd, _I think to myself. That's my descriptive word. And obviously, the best I can do. Watching Godzilla is like watching _Mary Poppins _all over again except with the unnecessary violence and with the annoying singing.

Who could have thought a woman's vocals could make the 1960's a time where Broadway musicals could be converted into a film as great as Godzilla?

I sure wouldn't have.

"Shut up, Dez. No one really cares about the history of movies," Gale replies, as ignorant as a dog. All he can do is play _Rock Band 3 _on expert mode. Either guitar or drums, Gale can go expert. But on academics areas, he can go beginner.

"Well, hanging with you people sure seems like a burden," Dez snaps.

"How?" I ask, not sure if he means he can't be his smart ass troll self or he just finds us annoying with our blaring rock music.

"For instance, the music is deafening me by the second. And oh for the love of God, the stupidity level in this cluster of horny teenagers really isn't enough to be compared to the wild 70's," he states.

I laugh at the word "_horny."_ How in the fudge are we horny teenagers? The real question is how the hell we went from Godzilla to the 70's or any other historical year. It's a tragic day in history when rock music was created. If you could just see how crazy they were, you'd be surprised how our fucked up society today is nothing compared to back then.

Back at home, mother has pictures of herself with huge, feathery hair that made woman look more like retarded birds more than anything. It's as if 2012 is nothing compared to the crap that went on in the 70's.

_I love rock n' roll  
>So put another dime in the jukebox, baby<br>I love rock n' roll  
>So come an' take your time an' dance with<em>

_I love rock n' roll  
>So put another dime in the jukebox, baby<br>I love rock n' roll  
>So come an' take your time an' dance with me<em>

"Finally the music is gone!" Dez yelled at the top of his lungs. It's as if watching some man being eaten in '_The Walking Dead'. _But the difference is that it's not a _man _being eaten, it's a stinking _troll _being eaten. The thought makes me snicker.

_Dez the troll being eaten by a zombie! _

'_Oh, for goodness sake, Katniss, you're too childish. You're a soon to be a senior in high school. You're such a kid.'_

"Dez?" Peeta has been as silent as a fox watching its victim. _Strange, _I think to myself. I could think of anyone who could be charismatic and talkative besides Dez in this room, it would be Peeta. Whatever phase he's going through, I'm in nowhere to interfere. Suddenly, I feel like a jerk.

"Yeah?"

"How the hells are we horny teenagers?" I laugh as he flashes that bright smile at me with his blue eyes shining.

"Don't act as if you don't know. By the looks of it, you and Katniss are the…," He begins, but it's not even enough to provoke Peeta from punching him on the arm.

"You didn't have to hit me," Dez snaps, recovering from his smart ass stroll.

"Enough with that, I say we go out for some ice cream," Clove says, finally beginning her apocalypse of annoyance.

"It's late," Glimmer complains.

"Ugh! Why do you have to ruin the fun? Fudge Nut," Clove accuses.

"I'm being reasonable, Shit head!" Glimmer snaps back at Clove.

"Glimmer…being reasonable? Yeah right, we believe that," I retort.

"Sounds like someone else we know," Peeta says, glancing at Demeter.

"Would we please shut up and watch _Mary Poppins _in peace?" Dez shouts, shutting everyone up.

I personally hate this movie. It reminds me of cotton candy with that saturated sugar that leaves a sweet taste on your tongue. As you can pretty much guess, I hate cotton candy more than _Mary Poppins _and _Godzilla. _It wasn't a very pleasant memory with the cotton that embarrassed and disgraced my miserable childhood.

_It was kindergarten. I was just five years-old, living life carelessly, and yet, I found school a piece of crap, useless crap. Why did we even need to learn our ABC's? That day, we got a treat because it was Friday. Every Friday, we'd get some special treat for our good work. You had to have three stars on a chart next to your name. Bullshit, I thought. Though I was only five, I didn't really say bullshit (just to make it clear)._

"_Cotton candy!" Our teacher, Mrs. Fallon, cheered. All the other kids were excited. When that fluffy substance hit my nostrils, I thought I was in heaven. When it entered my mouth and down my throat to my stomach, sure enough it went right back up. And I threw up all over Vicky Maroon, the meanest little troll alive that is five years-old. _

"I love to laugh!" Peeta sings along with the movie. This movie is getting me sicker by the second. I can almost smell the cotton candy.

"!" Everyone yells. My head feels like a land of candy. _Candy Land? _Not a very happy sight for someone like me.

When the movie is finally over, everyone is half asleep. Misery, that's what I went through this entire movie and no one, cared about how I felt about it. I find myself smiling. _Revenge. _


	23. A Nerd's Thoughts

_**I apologize for my own stupidity for not updating sooner. But, here it is. Thank you so much.**_

_**And some bad news. Only one chapter after this one. But the last chapter is pretty long. Don't expect a short regular one like this. **_

Music is blaring from the car and into the beach. You'd wonder why a bunch of teenagers would go to the beach at midnight. Well, that's just how stupid we really, truly are. On the contrary, Clove thinks it's not a phase of retardation. It's "fucking awesome". I've told Clove about going back to New York. She didn't seem all that too happy. But she didn't go all "I hate you" on me. She accepted it, knowing it would pop up sooner or later.

Father has secretly called us "Teen Bunch." This group consists of me, Peeta, Clove, Gale, Cato, Demeter, Glimmer, and Dez. Am I missing someone? I barely keep track of it. Now that father has told me about it, it's not so "secret" anymore.

I've been thinking a lot about senior year in high school. There will be much more _talks _from my mom. I mean, the whole topic of sexual intercourse makes me want to throw bricks at someone's face thanks to Clove's latest conclusion.

"_You wanted some of 'Peeta Lovin''", she said, laughing like a mental donkey. _

Prim has been bugging me all the time when we're talking on the phone. Apparently, we have these new neighbors and they have a little girl who's like seven years-old. Prim was discussing, which in my case I think of it as arguing, about what's real and what isn't. Well, let's just say that little girl roasted Prim like a boss. And since then, Prim has been dying to murder that little "troll".

"_Janice and I were talking about Santa. I told her Santa isn't real. And then she said my relationship with __**Zac Efron**__ isn't either! That little troll can't stop laughing at me," Prim whines, as if I'd ever help her murder a seven year-old. _

The use of the word "troll" is overexposed. Nowadays, no one around me can come up with a better insult.

_Low-life losers…_

Peeta removes his shirt and runs to the water like a little kid. I can't help but look at his body. Hearing laughter behind me, I stop and continue planning ways of revenge for making me watch _Mary Poppins. _Dez and Clove have been spending much time together. They might already be a couple. What makes me even more suspicious is the fact that Clove is a bit too happy lately. It's not that I don't like Clove's happiness, it's just weird when she's not her rude ass self. On the bright side, when Clove's happy, she's a retard. There's no doubt I could get back at her now.

"Hey, Kat! Come over here and stop looking at us like you are going to kill someone," Peeta shouts from the water, waving at me…_shirtless. _

I have no time to admire his wet body. I'm a complete fool when that's in my sight. Instead, I get up from the beach chair and remove my shirt and shorts until I'm in my bathing suit. Unwittingly, I wore a bikini. It reminds me of another time when Glimmer and Demeter forced me to wear it. Now, it's as if they haunt me in my sleep, saying, "_Wear the bikini, wear the bikini!" _

_How can Peeta still be with me? After thinking that, I'm officially a nerd…and not the intelligent type._

I run to the water along with them. It's cold but refreshing since the air is so moist and hot during summer at night. At least I don't have to worry about music class, stupid prom, and any other worry that comes with high school. Senior year won't be able to top what happened to me this year…_nothing _can.

Who knows? Life isn't always on the right track for this troublemaker.

Peeta smiles and picks me up by my waist from behind, kissing my cheek and spinning me around. I laugh.

"I'm going to throw up, Peeta. Stop spinning me or I'll become the wheel of toxic," I say, laughing as he spins me faster.

He laughs and puts me down. "I could say so for myself, too. I'm a bit dizzy."

I raise an eyebrow. "Oh really?" Next thing you know, Peeta's drenched in salt water thanks to this girl.

_Why do I keep referring to myself in the third-person?_

_How am I supposed to know? You're the one who's easily distracted by the stupidest things, _my conscious snaps right back. I raise an eyebrow at myself. All of a sudden, my thoughts are a full anti-bitch mode. It's as if I'm angry at myself. The reason why? I don't know. But my conscious is really pissing me off.

We sit around after the damage is done to my body with water. I've thrown water balloons and I've gotten hit by them, too. But balloons filled with freaking water have never hurt like this. I have a few red marks left on me. Clove's got some serious problems when water balloons are a part of our current event.

_Did you __**just **__realize that, idiot?_

_Yes, _I think to myself.

I need to stop. I'm a bit worried for myself. _Literally. _Ever since Clove's gotten that _thought _in my head, I can't do anything but think the strangest things ever. Just today, Dez was sitting next to me in the car and he kept saying he thinks chicken is the best food. Well, you'll never guess what I thought of…

_Oh, really? I like chicken noodle soup_

_Chicken noodle soup, chicken noodle soup, chicken noodle soup_

_With a soda on the side_

Since then, that song has been stuck on my head. Who knew a song that old would get stuck in an almost-there-senior-in high school? Like…really? I'm in the process of a phase I call stupidity.

Clove takes her meddlesome ass and sits down on a beach blanket with monkeys on it right next to me. I shoot her a look and she shrugs.

"I don't understand why you take everything I say so seriously. Calm down and live life, Katniss Everdeen!" She exclaims, throwing her hands in the air.

_Hands in there like you just don't care. _

_Shut up, Katniss, _I tell myself.

"You sound like a hippie," I say, earning a punch in the arm by the lovely Clove. "And are you asking me not to take you seriously?"

"I guess so," she shrugs.

I roll my eyes at her. The darkness of the hours sends chills down my spine. "Are you cold?" Clove asks me.

I shrug. "No." It's not true. I'm not cold; I just hate being out so late. It's a bit unusual, really. A teenager not wanting to stay up late and go out with his/her friends? Yeah…that's something. I guess I'm just a nerd. Basically, every adolescent my age would want to stay out. But me, the strange part of me, likes being at home and doing nothing. I like being a complete couch potato and you know what?

I might just even eat potatoes. And after watching _Mary Poppins _you'd think I'd be scarred for life.

I roll my eyes at myself and wish that this strange phase of stupidity would just go by in about seconds from now. Peeta lies down beside me, staring at the stars up in the night sky. His eyes have that cute, little shine in them mixed with a beautiful blue. I snuggle close to him and watch the skies with him.

"What's up with you lately? You've been acting…_strange_," he says.

_Oh god, now I have to tell him. He'd laugh. _

I give up on lying to him. I'll just kill Clove right after it. It's all in a day's work.

"Um…Clove has been putting these thoughts in my head. She thinks she's right, but she's wrong," I say. It's not enough with the details, and by the look on Peeta's face I can see clearly that he notices it, too.

He shrugs. "Clove's always getting people in to self-conflict. She's just…stupid like that," he says, looking as if he didn't like calling her stupid.

"Yeah…I guess she's that stupid," I say, barely over a whisper.

_I finally have a plan, Clove. Get ready. _

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